The Kieve Annual

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Published by and for the
staff and boys of Kieve

Printed by the Lincoln County Publishing Co.
Damariscotta/Newcastle, Maine

2013 Annual Dedication

Lee with Lou Piotrowski from The Great Mother and New Father Conference

Lee Giberson

As the old English proverb says, the way to a man's heart is through
his stomach. Since 1996 Lee Giberson has lovingly filled our hearts
and bellies in Pasquaney. She often times prepares 1,000 meals a day!
It's pure joy to walk into the kitchen early in the morning to see Lee's
smiling face, up to her elbows in her latest delicious concoction or
wielding a giant carving knife. Whether Lee is cooking for Leadership
School kids, summer campers. Veterans, Great Mothers, or our Board
of Trustees, it's very common to hear banter at meals such as, "This
is the best food I've ever eaten." Or "I'm definitely giving my mom
this recipe." When the idea of a Kieve Garden surfaced, Lee and her
incredible cadre of helpers were quick to fully embrace it. Pasquaney
in the winter is now full of seedlings getting a head start on the short
Maine growing season. Not only do Lee and the ladies help plant
the food and maintain the gardens, they churn out all kinds of fresh,
healthy, home-grown dishes. Pasquaney is the center of the Kieve
universe and Lee is our fearless leader. Thank you, Lee!

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JUNIOR KIEVE COURAGE - FIRST SESSION
Back- Louisa Lawton, Logan Jackonis, Trey Zenker, Garret Jensen; Middle- Reed Hyde,
Hugh Holmes, Simon DiMatteo, Dawson Kirkland, Henry Higgs, Walker McGinley,
Anders Kirkland; Front- Cooper Pickering, Charlie Fenwick, Thomas Koester, Artus
Mosquet, Burk McGill, Finn Jacobs

JUNIOR KIEVE KINDNESS - FIRST SESSION
Back- Nick Merriam, Sam Fulgham, T.J. Feagan, Haywood Sarkes; Middle- Jack Colgate,
Will Uffelman, Clark Keough, Douglas Gillespie, Edward Nagler, Gabe Feurtado, Luke
Galiardo; Front- Nick Errico, Nico Palazzi, J.Z. Zucker, Alistair Nalle, Rory Toland,
Connor Smith

42

JUNIOR KIEVE LOYALTY - FIRST SESSION
Back- Dex Jenks, Frazier Dougherty, Pasha Chirkov, Ahlwynn Tabor, Zander DeLuca,
Grant Pietri, Luke Trowbridge, Michael Margulies, Drew DeLuca, Vern Van Oot;
Front- Jack Kisilywicz, Thomas Kisilywicz, Luke Durkin, Cedar Cannon, Tim Chirkov,
Meredith Middlebrooks

JUNIOR KIEVE PERSEVERANCE - FIRST SESSION
Back- Louis Cusano, Emily Carney, Peter Mackell, Ryan Cholnoky; Middle- Billy
Kitchel, Jasper Chartener, Will Vincent, Hunter Groton, Connor Palen, Teddy
Seidenberg, James Boyle; Front- J.T. Meyer, Chase Tilson, Walker Hyman, Stephen
Souder, Will Koester

43

JUNIOR KIEVE RESPECT - FIRST SESSION
Back- Ben Swanson, Johnny Silver, Jameson DeNyse, Jackson Alvord, Henry
Seidenberg, Griffin Makovsky, Ben Thompson, Trey Souder, Emily Gabriel, Max
Harmon; Front- Zane Bhatti, Daniel Cicero, James Kontulis, Carter Alvord, Luc
Ribauh, Peter McGill

*4

4

SOUTH GLENAYR - FIRST SESSION
Back- Maggie Casey, Nolan Doyle, Cole Phillips, Garret Jensen, Henry Wagg, Harry Hill;
Middle- Nic Valdes, Remy Erdman, Stephen Smith, Cooper Greene, Mishka Shirin-
Stroh, Colin McNamara-Bordewick, Brent Sullivan, Oliver Firmenich; Front- Benjamin
Meglin, Graham Abramo, Angus Bell, Sam Eichmann

44

NORTH GLENAYR - FIRST SESSION
Back- Haywood Sarkes, Will Fox, Liza Schmidt, Ricky Nix, Luke Ross; Middle-
Brooks Catlin, Charlie Riker, Brennan Escobar, Ben Clark, Lucas Falezan, Vendant
Kiyawat, Burnham Johnston, Caleb Conner, Cobey Blumenthal, Collin Rodrigue,
Tomas Stockton; Front- Sam Hall, Cliff Belknap, Harry Bell

NORTH TOWNSEND - FIRST SESSION
Back- Ben Colley, John Goodman, Warren von Weise, Claire Mesrobian, Nick Merriam;
3rd row- Liam Harkins, Warner Greene, Brady Johnston, Chase Mockridge, Max Willard,
James Hughes, Jack Glomb; 2nd row- Alex McCall, Grady MacKeigan, Jackson DaPuzzo,
Walt Huffman, Jack Hutchins, Luke Waters; Front- A.J. Michalski

45

SOUTH BUNKERHILL - FIRST SESSION
Back- Nat Shenton, Drew Grennon, Logan Jackonis, Alexa Marcil, Turney McKee;
Middle- Kieran Blunnie, Ben Scully, Teddy Donohue, Henry Bright, Hugh Zanelli,
Cameron Thompson, Carter Vincent, William Scott, Zach Harrison; Front- Campbell
Bell, Harry Saridakis, Alex Maruszewski, Max Gilbert, Brooks Allen

SOUTH CUNNINGHAM - FIRST SESSION
Back- Graham Abbey, Jeff Van Oot, Ian Travis, Chris Mackey, Janie Rardin; Middle-
Henry Pohle, Teddy Schoenholtz, Tim O'Brien, Jordan Orloff, Emmet McDonnell,
Jack Redfield, Bobby Gould, Dodge Woloson, Howell Baker, George Mennen; Front-
Jack LaCasse, Tucker Catlin, Andrew Wilson, Chase Wright

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NORTH BUNKERHILL I - FIRST SESSION
Back- Joseph Scinto, Freddy Bower, Will Phifer, Peter Mackell, Julia Shepley, Will
Stevens; Middle- William Baratta, Brooks Sleeper, Liam Piper, Alex Naber, Will
Zierden, Si Cunningham, Tyler Eichmann, Paul Sullivan, Jack Warren, Jackson Eisen;
Front- Zeke Reilly, Sam Kartsonis, Matthew Brown

NORTH BUNKERHILL II - FIRST SESSION

Back- Janie Warnock, Conner Thomas, Charlie Parker, Bo O'Connor, Greg Ferland;
3rd row- Patrick Howard, Gates Van der Wo Ik, Reed Vanacore, Arthur Courtois, Nick
Scully, Louie Lyons, Will Miller, Andy Mcllvaine; 2nd row- Graham Kelley, Jack
Ceriale, Philip Kaplan, Aidan York; Front- Mike Orr

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NORTH CUNNINGHAM - FIRST SESSION
Back- Drew Lincoln, Max Harmon, Henry Arcano, Hanna Wiegers, Pierce Leonard;
Middle- Spencer Sapir, Jack Gallagher, Drew Brigham, Will Earley, Spence Robbins,
Henry Kenney, Javi Baigorri, Emmet McNamara, Finn Johnston, Jack Copeland, Julio
Baigorri; Front- Nate Bartlett, Aidan Tierney, Victor Rego

SOUTH HARRIS - FIRST SESSION

Back- Ryan Cholnoky, Ned Beckwith, J.R McCurdy, Emily Gabriel, Edward
Haubenreiser; Middle- Yliuz Sierra Marin, Tommy Forloni, Charlie Cowen-Breen,
Henry Scott, Hayes Zierden, Myles Ribault, Chris Yates, Quentin Abramo, Nicholas
Picchione, Nick Huber; Front- Will Magargee, James Pokorny, Will Singer, Sam
Nassif

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SOUTH HARRINGTON - FIRST SESSION
Back- Emily Carney, Harrison Thompson, Tyler Hill, Jake Rockefeller; Middle- Eli
Mundy, Will Borda, Will Hass, Chris Bassett, Declan McCarthy, Luke Jannotta,
Finn McConaughy; Front- Jack Hall, Wes Dixon, Timmy Thompson, Dan Schechter,
Thomas Dixon, Ksavek Danilowicz

NORTH HARRIS - FIRST SESSION

Back- Will Morrow, Henry Wagner, Louisa Lawton, Tucker Callanan; Middle- Nicholas
Slimmon, Charlie Hollington, Jeremy Safford, Alden Blue, Sam Poulos, Max Arnold,
Jebb Vincent, Thomas Falezan, Peter Knowlton, Ian Fay; Front- George Janvier, Matthew
Kellett, George Maguire

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BANK I - FIRST SESSION
Back- Meredith Middlebrooks, Andy Lynch, Chip Holmes, Spencer Ward; Middle-
Brian Drew, Miles Bass, Chase Hedlund, Daniel Tepler, James McCall, Wallace
Jackson, Gill Walker, Christian Rodrigue, Mac Berry, Sam Saunders; Front- Cal Agran,
Brad Geismar, Stefan Reutter

BANK II - FIRST SESSION

Back- Meredith Middlebrooks, Evan Kantor, Henry Kelly, Stefan Allen; Middle-
Andrew McArthur, Conor Knott, Dana Gajewski, Sam lacavazzi, Sam Bedford, Billy
Leyden, Michael Pilkington, Colin Redmond, Spencer Ducharme, McKenna Palmer;
Front- Ben Frey, Alex Valdes, Carter Feiss, Clarence Cox

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ALLAGASH I - FIRST SESSION
Back- C.J. Richardson, Sam Fulgham, Jake Lynch; Middle- Will Cordonnier, Henry
Gribbell, Liam Duggan, Will DeMuth, Connor Kaniewski, Zane Buono, Marty Arnold,
Teddy Macfarlane; Front- Jeffers Insley, Taylor Cashman

ALLAGASH II - FIRST SESSION
Back- States Langham, Nick Sanchez, Buck Auchincloss, Sam Fulgham, Henry Hass;
Front- Chris Kartsonis, Andrew Pittman, Sam Velleca, Brooks Hennessy, Conor Boyle,
Alex Ulm, David Regal, Andrew Hennessy

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ALLAGASH III - FIRST SESSION
Back- Marcus Pagliarulo, Michael Tirone, Kam Landry, Henry Clark, Mac Keyser,
George Cole; Front- Mac Stevens, Andrew Binder, Toofs Rowland, Jose Cortes, Adu
Dobbs

LONG VOYAGE I - FIRST SESSION
Back- Eli Campbell, Hib Schenck, Henry Coote; Middle- Jake Taylor, Aidan Slack-
Watkins, Andrew Conner, Jeff Coote, Teo Ciserani, Nate Stuart, Matty Sullivan, Jack
Kilgallon; Front- Matthew Harrison, Sam Pinsky, Leighton Calvin

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LONG VOYAGE II - FIRST SESSION

Back- Mac MuIIer, Zach Atchinson, John Marsh; Front- Alex Armour, Robert Dettmann,
Joey Lyons, Thomas Dougherty, Conner Callahan, Will Bliss, Tristan Chaix, Parker
Dotson, Nathaniel Lyons

LONG VOYAGE III - FIRST SESSION
Back-Will Hackett, Nick Favaloro; Middle- Gordon Johnson, Harris Clark, Patrick
Friend, Josh Reilly, Greg Venizelos, Brandon Hawley, Jack Davenport, Chase Clarke;
Front- Peter Lavieri, Ben Dixon

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, .

MAINE TRAILS II - FIRST SESSION
Back- Pietro Barbieri, Walker Barnes; Front- Reath Neilson, Paul Archambeau,
Peter Schmidt, Atticus Shorr, Arthur Forcione, Brian Andersen, Bryce Klehm, Peter
Sanna

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JUNIOR KIEVE COURAGE - SECOND SESSION
Back- Jamie Pinkham, Greg Ferland, Alexa Marcil, Cole Phillips; Middle- Oliver
Carneal, Andrew Jaroch, Sam Sewall, Devan Mehrish, Thomas Mermen, Alden
Hunold; Front- Jonathan Elkins, Alex Patricelli, Patten Royal, Harper Moxcey, Bryson
Escobar, Henry Stone, Jasper Norman

JUNIOR KIEVE KINDNESS - SECOND SESSION
Back- Harrison Thompson, Maggie Casey, Graham Abbey, Will Stevens; Middle-
Will San Jose, Charlie Grunow, Will Ryckman, Will Tomlinson, Mac Greene, Harris
Proctor, Graham Beers; Front- Andrew Jessup, Max d'Aumale, Beckham Ytterdahl,
Theodore Chavarot, Gem Bugdaycay, Gray Connolly

56

JUNIOR KIEVE LOYALTY - SECOND SESSION
Back- Hanna Wiegers, Henry Kelly, Andy Lynch; Middle- Alex Mazansky, Tommy
Burton, Vernon Wright, Campbell HoIIiday, J.D. Farkas, Garrett Hall; Front- Philip
Sears, Miles Lasser, Max Gomez, Caleb Schultz, Gray Doyle, Vincent Shea

JUNIOR KIEVE PERSERVERANCE - SECOND SESSION
Back- Janie Warnock, Tucker Callanan, Henry Coote; Middle- Charlie Gosk, Marco
Schinella, Will Lesko, Coop Warrington, Thomas Regan, Colin Dowling; Front- Sam
Elkins, Cub Scott, Owen Pisa, Stephen Wright, Joey Cooper, Wyatt Browne

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JUNIOR KIEVE RESPECT - SECOND SESSION
Back- Sam Cooper, Aidan Pisa, Mekhi Ajose-Williamson, Amaury Dujardin, Lauren
Cardenas, Nick Favaloro, Dallas Thayer; Middle- Jack Fielden, Nicholas Fenton, Blake
Swensrud, Burns Campbell, Michael Brackett, Sam Carneal; Front- Nick Clifford,
Dray Krahmer, Scott Holland, Declan Dineen

SOUTH GLENAYR - SECOND SESSION
Back- Jake Rockefeller, Henry Coote, Pierce Leonard, Emily Gabriel, Ed Haubenreiser;
Middle- Perry Rodgers, Tyler Rodgers, Mason Speh, Gunnar Young, Brooks Walker,
Graycen Hayes-Begley, Finn Pennings, Joe Richter; Front- Peter Del Col, Tucker
Fearey, Bert Greene

i

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NORTH GLENAYR - SECOND SESSION
Back- Will Stevens, Louisa Lawton, Will Phifer, Vern Van Oot, Ha5rwood Sarkes; Middle-
Reed Patricelli, Thomas Henry, Gabriel de Kerogorlay, Max Bensley, Jack Lonergan,
Jack Thibodeau, Nathaniel Cimral, Ben Talpey, Brock Froschauer; Front- Pablo Garza,
Nick Donaldson, Dean Maner

NORTH TOWNSEND - SECOND SESSION
Back- Brad Geismar, Zach Atchinson, Mimi Middlebrooks, Drew Grennon, Henry
Kelly; Middle- Mark Shapiro, Patch Duffy, Wayne Whyles, Dillon Sutko, Caleb Packard,
Lucas Galarza, Gavin Reid, Rob Geniesse; Front- Elias Weston, Charlie Niccolini, Alex
Unruh, Sam Gardiner

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SOUTH BUNKERHILL - SECOND SESSION
Back- Harrison Thompson, Henry Clark, Claire Mesrobian, Jake Lynch, Spencer Ward;
Middle- Sebastian Andrews, Sam Emery, Colton Mairs, Jack O'Donnell, Ben Norman,
Ben Thorsheim, Hudson Neleman, Thomas de Carbonnieres, Bailey Williams; Front-
Bower Schmaltz, Hudson Lazzara, Bayard Walsh

SOUTH CUNNINGHAM - SECOND SESSION
Back- Nick Merriam, CJ. Richardson, Mac Keyser, Greg Ferland, Emily Carney;
Middle- Luke Burleson, Adrien Chavarot, Henry Southall, Patrick Elwood, Lars
Nordquist, Tyler Unruh, Ryan Cull, Hayden Hunt; Front- Andrew Busch, Wyatt
Walker, Jasper Pennings

60

SOUTH TOWNSEND - SECOND SESSION
Back- Jack Marston, Julia Shepley, John Marsh, Ryan Cholnoky; Middle- Luca
Medweth, Win Lane, Jess Tuglu, Drew Boykin-Holland, Carter Boykin-Holland,
Miles Gaskin, Ethan Carls, Hamish Dubitsky; Front- Will Staniar, Graham McTeague,
Ollie Dunlap

NORTH BUNKERHILL - SECOND SESSION

Back- Ricky Nix, Alexa Marcil, J.R McCurdy, Eli Campbell; Middle- Christian Conte,
Andrew Aarts, Sid Smith, Joe Geniesse, Seb Murrell, J.T. McAllister, Joel Hatch, Max
Carneal, Jack Roberts; Front- Luke Murrell, Max Gesner, Jojo McCurdy, Diego Garza,
Zander Gomez

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NORTH CUNNINGHAM - SECOND SESSION
Back- Will Fox, Evan Kantor, Will Morrow, Lauren Cardenas; Middle- Jack Wilmerding,
Gerlain Djoko, Dunk MacAvoy-Thompson, Nathan Shapiro, Graham Codd, Dan
Schechter, Garret Dyckman, Henry Robinson, Ethan Smith; Front- Jameson Roller,
Xander Martin, Henry Ledyard, Cole Rogers

SOUTH HARRIS - SECOND SESSION
Back- Luke Ross, Nick Sanchez, Henry Holliday, Addison St. Onge-May, Cameron
Chiaramonte, Maggie Casey, Nicolas Giandrea; Middle- Tim White, Eric Mehrberg,
Matteo Perper, Theo Stone, Johnny Hollington, Ian McTeague, Nick Kelley; Front-
Drew Marshall, Will Sears

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SOUTH HARRINGTON - SECOND SESSION
Back- Freddy Bower, Ian Travis, Janie Warnock, Mikey Kant or; Middle- Peter Yanes,
Mike Hornung, Stephen Brackett, George Brinn, Teddy Truex, Mike Dayya, Jonah
Hirsch, Brady Reynolds, Peyton Bean; Front- Momo Durach, Grant Carlson, Timmy
Macrae, Tommy Deegan, Marco Suarez

NORTH HARRIS - SECOND SESSION
Back- Pietro Barbieri, Hanna Wiegers, John Goodman; 3rd row- Leonard Steger, Max
Thorsheim, Patrick Kavanagh, Wyeth Morgan, Ethan Reid, Brinton Thomas, Forrest
Lazzara, Thomas Krush, Stuart Baker, Will Seaman; 2nd row- Parker Loonie, Ludo
Viani, J. Will Miller, Brandon Muratore; Front- Harry Hill

63

BANK I - SECOND SESSION
Back- Claire Heinichen, Charlie Parker, Hib Schenck, Buck Auchincloss; Middle-
William Yanes, Drew Matson, Andrew Obstler, Ryan Silverman, Wyatt Schiff, Zephyr
Pascador, Zale Magder-Pascaris, Keegan Froschauer, Vanick Djoko; Front- David
Cantillo, Graham Nielsen, Duncan Walsh, Max Zimmermann

BANK II - SECOND SESSION

Back- Ben Colley, Trey Zenker, Claire Heinichen, Chris Mackey; Middle- Eli Goodrich,
Henry McNeill, Andrew Dorman, Andy Spiers, Harry Makovsky, Parker Swensrud,
Charlie Hansen, Brooks Biddle, Sam Czaja, Michael Senko; Front- Max Van Aller,
Gray Bennett, Andrew Clark

64

ALLAGASH I - SECOND SESSION

Back- Roscoe Wetlaufer, Logan Jackonis, Nick Potter, Jake Froschauer, Cameron
Miller; Middle- Grey McGloon, Sam Gardner, Jared Schott, Jay Younger, Duncan
Crow, Connor Wolfe, Tyler Williamson, Austin Conte; Front- Cam Stafford

ALLAGASH II - SECOND SESSION
Back: Nolan Doyle, Mike Orr; Middle: Jack Gaffney, Buford Reid, Will Close,
Charlie Streator, Jamie Holt, Ellis Cooper, Myles Paton; Front: Kiefer Martin, Paul
Justenhoven

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ALLAGASH III - SECOND SESSION
Back- Nat Shenton, Peter Mackell; Front- Luca Perper. Buddy Burrows, Joseph Riley,
Keelan Woodard, Bob Zintl. Sal Suarez

LONG VOYAGE I - SECOND SESSION
Back- Ben Fox, Ned Beckwith, Henry Wagner, Dylan Gaffney, Bruce Haywood, Henry
Arcano, Sam Zintl; Middle- David Regal, Constantin Scheibler, Nick Speranza, Will
Kaback, Jack Williams, Malik Washington, Matt Baldwin; Front- Jules Cook, Bo
Hawkes

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LONG VOYAGE II - SECOND SESSION
Back- Turney McKee, Tyler Hill; Middle- Billy Dietze, Pete Cooke, Nick Baker, Tim
Kennedy, Jake Donaldson, Clay Smith, Dave Dayya, Sammy Denby; Front- Ben
Weaver, Matt Donaldson

MAINE TRAILS I - SECOND SESSION
Back- Max Harmon, Ash Barbeau, Trevor Dorman, Ike Lanier, Hal Marshall, Griffin
Hall, Avery Weiss, Will Hackett; Front- James Lawton, Hayden McKee, Francesco
Merlo Pich, Eddie Fischer

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MAINE TRAILS II - SECOND SESSION
Back: Ben Hubley, Zach Bernard, Ben Swanson, James Stites, Wiley Hopkins, Stefan
Allen; Front: Emerson Salovaara, Wes Villano, O Fox, Jeremy Batchelder, Peter
Caffrey, Hamish MacDiarmid

First Session OD Reports

OD: Charlie Richardson
June 25, 2013

After twelve days of staff training
highlighted by a wilderness rafting,
canoeing, and a hiking trip of our own,
we were more than ready to greet the first
session 2013 campers. And we didn't
have to wait long as Clarence Cox and
his mom entered Pasquaney dining hall
at 8:30 AM... and we were off.

The day was a scorcher by Maine
standards topping out at 94 degrees.
This weather enabled us to have all the
campers that came by auto jump into
the lake throughout the day. Besides
the waterfront, tennis, the adventure
course, and the new four square courts
were popular hangouts. By the afternoon
everyone was more than ready for their
first Round Top Ice Cream of the summer.
Soon after Henry, Sam, and BJ rolled up
with the two busses and we all gathered
for our first meal together: Spaghetti and
salad. The traditional Super Counselor,
Simon Says, lowering of the flag, and the
Kieve Song followed. From there each
cabin settled in and readied themselves
for the exciting month ahead.

OD: T.J. Feagan
June 26, 2013

The day had finally arrived! It was the
first full day for the summer of 2013 and
with camp underway it was time once
again for the historic tradition known
as the Island Swim. Before the flag was
raised, the importance of tradition and
the opportunity for each individual to
make their mark on the history books of
Kieve was expressed to the campers. At
breakfast the high energy of Pasquaney
carried to counselor announcements as
staff recalled their own challenges and
triumphs with the Island Swim. Test duty
for the morning was all about camp trivia
as vets were matched up against rookies
in demonstrating their knowledge of
Kieve 's geography, traditions, and past
counselors. Zach Atchinson, Drew
Lincoln, and C.J. Richardson bested their
rookie opponents and pulled off the
victory in the trivia challenge.

After breakfast and morning duties, the
campers headed down to the waterfront
to attempt the famed Island Swim. In
total, 66 yards of Lake Damariscotta were
all that separated the individuals on
shore from their eternal glory. By the time
the final camper had made it back to the
swim dock, there were 76 names added
to the list of those who had completed
the Island Swim.

After lunch and rest hour each cabin
headed to their afternoon activities
which included everything from Frolf
to rock climbing. Even though there
was some rain in the afternoon, it didn't
stop the campers from enjoying the day.
Before dinner all of the cabins put their
engineering skills to work by creating
containers for an egg drop contest in the
Buck building. As the rain fell outside
each cabin took turns dropping eggs from
the Buck balcony.

At dinner the vets called out the
rookies yet again and it was clear that the
only way to settle their conflict was with
a big game of color wars. With Cabin Row
on the soccer field and the older boys at
Walker Field the games continued until
the bell was rung for evening flag.

At flag we congratulated the boys who
had taken on the challenge of the Island
Swim. We reflected on all that we had
achieved that day and what still lay before
us in the coming weeks. Reath Neilson
and Peter Schmidt lowered the flag and
all of camp joined together to sing the
Kieve song. It had been an awesome day
and a great start to the summer.

OD: C.J. Richardson
June 27, 2013

The day started with the campers
walking up to flag and looking down at
Pasquaney and seeing a huge Survivor
sign, which let them know that the
theme for the day was Survivor. The
ten survivors were Emily Carney, Pierce
Leonard, Henry Kelly, Chris Mackey,
Evan Kantor, Drew Lincoln, Liza Schmidt,
Ben Swanson, Mike Orr and Fred Bower.
They were separated into two teams. The
teams were the rookies, the first year

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counselors, versus the veterans. Each
cabin was assigned one counselor to
cheer for and, if they won, they would
receive an ice cream prize the next day
at lunch. Throughout the day there were
competitions that the survivors took part
in. Some of the funniest competitions
were the water-moving contest where
the survivors could only transport water
using their mouths, and a tent set-up
competition. By the end of the day it
came down to Evan Kantor and Liza
Schmidt. In the end, Liza won, which
meant North Cunningham and Long
Voyage 2 won treats.

OD: Evan Kantor
Date: 6/26/13
Theme: Rainy Day

Today the attitude was simple: make
this rainy day the best in Kieve's history.
From the start we knew it would be
raining all day, so we were determined
to persevere and not allow the weather
to dictate our moods, but rather our
moods to dictate the weather. We started
off the day perfect: sleeping in an extra
half-hour to brighten our spirits. After
a quick motivational speech at Flag,
which was raised by Clarence Cox and
Colin Redmond, we began our day with
a positive outlook that nothing, not even
constant rain, could bring us down.
Breakfast was a blast, with campers
and counselors dancing all around
to upbeat songs. After Vern Van Oot
won the Test duty by fitting 12 chubby
bunnies (marshmallows) in his mouth,
it was clear that the day was going to
be funny and filled with excitement.
Morning activities were rainy day based,
so campers mainly played indoor games
like Ga-Ga Ball and performed indoor
activities like woodshop and dodgeball
in Innisfree. We decided to skip morning
G-Swim on account of the rain, and
instead cabins assembled in Pasquaney
for board games and music. Lunch was
delicious: BBQ chicken and potatoes,
which we ate inside. Of course, that led
to a big dance party in Pasquaney. It was
really great to see the campers so happy
and excited despite the rain, really
displaying the positive attitudes that
Kieve prides itself in developing. After a

nice long rest period, the campers were
roaring to continue the best rainy day
ever. We offered Aqua Attack Theater,
where kids could watch previous Aqua
Attack films (accompanied by popcorn,
of course), and Bingo, where kids won
great prizes like "Win a date with a
Ritz girl," and "Get out of G-Swim free"
cards. It might have been a shift in the
forecast, but I truly believe that it was the
campers' positive attitudes that made the
rain stop in the afternoon and allowed us
to have an afternoon G-Swim. After G-
Swim the campers enjoyed a big warm
dinner, followed by a surprise game
of Capture the Flag! Usually played on
the first day of camp, the weather did
not permit it, so the surprise first game
of Capture the Flag really capped off an
incredibly positive and fun rainy day
here at Kieve. When lowering the flag, we
talked about how the right attitude can
make even the rainiest day feel bright,
and what an important quality optimism
is to bring into the real world. Alex and
Nick Valdes ended our day by lowering
the flag, and the campers slept soundly
after an upbeat and fun filled day.

OD: Dexter Jenks
June 29, 2013

As always on the first Saturday of
the session, camp awoke with the spirit
of dance coursing through their veins.
The cabins congregated around the flag
pole at the top of the hill wide-eyed and
bushy-tailed; ready for a day of home
cooked buffoonery. At flag I greeted
them with energy fueled by the risen
sun, and expressed my excitement at
being alive and well and in the presence
of my second family. After a short word
about the importance of creativity and
sharing one's excitement for living with
his surrounding brethren, it was time for
the table boys to take their posts at the
Pasquaney tables.

At breakfast, the day was kick-started
with tunes that few could help but shake
their hips and tap their feet to. The idea
of expressing one's self through the art of
dance was then showcased by counselors
competing for Test duty that morning in
the form of a silent disco dance off. Here,
select counselors were brought forward

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and presented with a pair of headphones
and were plugged into a music playing
device. Once the music was flowing
through their ears, they strutted their
stuff to an audience that could not hear
the beat to which the counselors moved.
From breakfast the camp dispersed to
take care of their assigned morning duties
before heading to morning activities.

The energy continued to flow through
camp as morning activities came to an
end and made way for first G-swim. To
decide who came in off the rafts first,
skits were performed with the prompt
of "Give us your best impression of
a Ritz Skit". Inevitably, many "RITZ
SKIT" chants rang out across the lake as
excitement welled up for the upcoming
performances.

At lunch, the Ritz Skit chants continued
making it difficult for the Ritz girls to get
a word in edgewise, and after another
boisterous lunch, the boys headed off to
rest period. On that day though, there
was a different agenda during the rest
period. Instead of pouring over received
letters from family and friends, the boys
of Kieve let their creative juices flow
while preparing for that evening's Air
Guitar performances.

From rest period to afternoon activities;
from afternoon activities to dinner;
anticipation for the night's entertainment
and performances continued to build. By
the end of dinner, the camp was hoarse
from the numerous "RITZ SKIT" chants,
and when the bell rang for the evening
activity, camp could not have been more
excited to hit the stage.

Starting with the youngest cabin, the
boys of Kieve put their best feet forward
as they wowed the camp with their
dance numbers. Taking the proverbial
cake for the second year in a row, the
cabin counseled by Will Phifer received
an earsplitting applause as well as an
encore. Once all of the boys wrapped up
their amazing air guitar performances, it
was time for the Ritz to take the stage.
Like always, the girls blew the crowd
away with their timeless dance moves
and subtle innuendos. Throughout their
many encores, the ladies were joined
by visiting Ritz alumni and were also
outdanced by first-year counselor and

dancing extraordinaire, Jeff "Vern" Van
Oot. While the camp would have chanted
for encores all through the night, the
dancing eventually came to an end and
the camp moved to end the day as they
started it, around the flag.

I gave closing remarks, outlining the
importance of living with a giving spirit
and drawing energy from the friends and
family around. Selflessness is common
trait of any Kiever, but is sometimes
hard to find in the outside world. This
gives all the more reason to spread the
love and to live with an open and giving
heart. That night, the boys of Camp Kieve
went to bed, having put on wonderful
performances for their peers, with the
fond memories of Kieve dancing through
their dreams.

CD: Janie Rardin
June 30, 2013

We awoke to the first beautiful Sunday
morning at Kieve. Flag went smoothly as
the children learned about the importance
of living in the moment and loving each
other as well as Kieve. Because, as we
all know, the worst day at Kieve is better
than the best day at home.

For test duty we had three fake rock
stars: Graham Abbey, Emily Gabriel,
and Claire Mesrobian, and one real-live
rock star: Dex (withholding last name
for personal security). The four had a
sing-off. Graham's dry, yet melodic voice
drove us all to tears. Then went Clair, the
best voice of the group. Emily sang a show
tune. She lost. BIG SURPRISE!!! Since
Dex is a real rock star, we were all excited
for him to sing, but he brought Ricky on
stage and had him sing Backstreet Boys
and let all of the children down. Dex
fades out!

After inspection, down at the chapel,
we sang a song entitled, "Rise and Shine,"
that went a little something like this
(HIT IT!), "...rained for 40 daysy daysy...
Noah he sent out a dovey dovey." There's
more, but I'll spare you. Anyway!! North
Glenayr went on to win sweetest. North
Bunkerhill II won loudest. Allagash III
won inspection, but South Cunningham
and some other cabin got second place
and since South Cunningham is my
cabin, let us not pay attention to the

72

others. GO SOUTH CUNNINGHAM!

For lunch, I was pleasantly surprised
to find that there was boneless chicken.
Also, the potato salad was better than
normal, so we were all overly happy,
laughing together, feeding each other,
and dancing. Picture it, because it was
truly something you see in the theatre.

To end the day, Pasquaney turned into
a Pasquino (like Pasquaney, but like also
a casino, get it?) The kids got jacked up
on candy, and the counselors on duty all
quit.

CD: Ben Swanson
July 1, 2013

July 1st will forevermore be known as
"Will Phifer Appreciation Day." As the
sun rose on the inaugural WPA Day, as it
would come to be known, campers were
welcomed to flag with the wise words
of OD Ben Swanson encouraging them
to appreciate those people at Kieve who
make it the amazing place that it is. He
had chosen to appreciate Will Phifer,
and decided that everyone else should
be forced to appreciate him as well. In
that vein, for Test Duty, counselors were
challenged to write limericks honoring
Phifer. Although they were all of top
quality, both in meter and rhyme, Emily
Carney found herself stuck with Test
Duty.

The day then continued like any
other — except with thoughts of Will in
all of our heads. For raft skits at General
Swim, campers found themselves
forced to imagine how important events
throughout history would have played
out had Will Phifer been present. At one
George Janvier found himself presenting
a fantastic Phifer impersonation, winning
it for his raft.

When the campers arrived at
Pasquaney for dinner, however, they
found that its sign had been altered to
pay homage to the great man the day
was honoring. Therefore, campers filed
through Will-Squaney to get their food
for dinner that night. As announcements
drew to a close. Will was asked to select
the evening activity, and what better a
choice than UltimateSports night?

As the flag was lowered, the boys were
asked to take a serious look at the day

and in the moment of silence, mentally
honored all the Will Phifers in their own
lives. The camp fell asleep tired, and
thankful for the existence of Phifer.

OD: Tyler Hill
July 2, 2013

A long time ago at a camp far, far
away...

The Camp awoke after an emergency
late sleep to be greeted by Walter at flag
whose voice rang out in a clear crisp
North Carolinian accent, "a long time
ago in a galaxy far far away". And thus
began Star Wars Day the 2nd of July
2013. Princess Leia (Maggie Casey) ran
past flag with Stormtroopers and Vader
(Me a.k.a. Tyler Hill) hot on her heels. A
firefight commenced and R2D2 (MiMi
Middlebrooks) and C3PO (Trey Zenker)
fled the scene before the traitorous
princess was taken by the Dark Lord of
the Sith and Stormtroopers. #@!%@$#$
and @!#%#$@ helped Vader to raise the
flag before the rest of the camp followed
Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ben Swanson) and
Luke Skywalker (Nat Shenton) down
to the Pasquaney Eisley Cantina where
a faceoff between Han Solo (TJ Feagan)
and Greedo (John Goodman) preceded
announcements. Several Star Wars
themed announcements were made in
which an unfortunate counselor lost
a hand and a smuggler searched for
cargo. To decide test duty three teams of
counselors were asked to demonstrate
their favorite force powers. Morning
Indian Circle was accompanied by a
meeting of the Death Star designer (John
Goodman) with Lord Vader, in which he
revealed that there may be a teensy tiny
little two meter hole that could cause
the destruction of the entire station.
Needless to say the conversation ended
in a shortness of breath for the architect.
The kids went off to morning activities
with this glimpse of the Dark-side's
vulnerability hanging over their heads.
Due to the overcast nature of the day first
G-Swim was converted to open hill but
when the lunch bell rang the kids dashed
to the line to be greeted by Han Solo,
Chewbacca (Dexter Jenks) and Luke being
closely pursued by two tie fighters. The
trio barely managed to escape due to some

73

good shooting by Luke and Han. After
lunch Grand Moff Tarkin (Will Phifer)
ordered the destruction of Alderann
(Harrison Thompson) by the Death Star
(Eric Pelletier). The campers then headed
off to rest hour with a light saber sound
after each activity. The Second Indian
Circle featured a dramatic re-enactment
of the trash compactor scene with Han,
Luke, Leia, and Chewy in garbage cans
being slowly compressed. Dinner came
to a climax with Vader striking Obi-Wan
down and the Sith seemingly gaining
the upper hand in the galactic battle of
good and evil. Luke, not to be outdone,
however, paired with Wedge Antilles
(Mike Orr) to craft a carefully planned
E.A. aimed at the destruction of the
Death Star. The day ended with closing
remarks about how amazing it is that so
many people can chip in and use their
imaginations to help make one person's
dream of being a Sith lord for a day come
true.

OD: Will Phifer
July 3, 2013

This morning at flag, every camper
and counselor arrived at the top of
the hill exhibiting their favorite pair
of socks on their hands for Socks-on-
Hands day. After an explanation of
Socks-on-Hands day, our small camp
headed to breakfast. For breakfast, we
had delicious sausage, egg, cheese, and
English muffin sandwiches. As this was
the last day before Junior Kieve arrives,
everyone was relishing the space that we
had to ourselves in the dining hall. For
Test Duty, Tyler Hill, Ricky Nix, Janie
Warnock, and Janie Rardin got in front of
camp in pairs. One partner fed the other
partner cereal through their arms with
socks on their hands. After a little cereal
was spilled. Test Duty was over, and the
campers ran off to complete their duties.

When we had finished with our
duties, we assembled again for Indian
Circle, which was made up of a mere
four cabins. This was the smallest camp
was ever going to get. The other cabins
that had attended breakfast were either
leaving on trips, or they were going on
the Snowgoose. To break from Indian
Circle, the campers were able to come

over to the staff area near the foursquare
boxes and complete an "Awwwww,
FREAK OUT!!!" chant. After morning
activities with our cabins, we assembled
together for a single general swim with
three rafts.

For lunch, we ate Pasquaney's famous
square pizza. During announcements,
some former counselors came to visit us,
including Katie Lincoln, Becky Ford, and
Emily Rutan, who all performed their
old chants in front of camp. Because we
had so few campers, there were a mere
eight activities to sign up for during
rest hour. Our second Indian Circle
was more traditionally split in between
campers and counselors after rest hour.
We had some great activities, ranging
from Stand-Up-Paddling to Gardening.
Afternoon activity period finished up
with a fantastic sunny General Swim.

For dinner, we had some excellent
ravioli pasta washed down with some
classic Kieve juice. To finish up the
night, we played Paparazzi, featuring
Bubba Watson; the Olsen twins; John
Goodman; a hotdog, hamburger, and
fries; and Brownie's dog. After a brief
flag ceremony, we headed back to our
cabins to fall asleep and get excited for
JK coming tomorrow.

OD: Andy Lynch
July 4, 2013

The 4th of July began with a reminder
of what the Fourth of July signified. Some
campers didn't remember that it was the
Fourth of July. Dates often seem irrelevant
while spending time at Kieve. I had my
two new guys. Miles and Stefan, raise the
flag. The raising of the flag was followed
by a parade down to breakfast. All of camp
followed Nat Shenton down to flag with
sparklers in hand while singing patriotic
songs. Breakfast captured the true spirit
of the Fourth of July with American flags
hung all over Pasquaney and American
flag table clothes decorating the tables. I
decided to embrace the day by dressing
in an American Flag tank top, top hat
and American flag jorts. Today was about
celebrating America!

After a breakfast that began with
the national anthem, the counselors
competed in a "test duty" where each

75

contestant had to blow up a red, white or
blue balloon until it popped. Later in the
day, at the general swims, the rafts acted
out great American moments and what
life would be like without the Fourth of
July.

Meanwhile, JK campers were rolling in
left and right. Today was JK's arrival day.
By dinner, all of JK had arrived and eaten
their first meal at Kieve. In order to get
everyone excited about JK, we constantly
chanted, "We got JK!" We were lucky
enough to get five new cabins full of
eager new JK campers.

Throughout dinner, Mike Orr and John
Goodman had a drawn out back and forth
after Mike accused John of being a British
sympathizer. After each announcement
between the two, the camp would erupt
into a huge "USA, USA, USA" chant.
All campers had a red, white and blue
ice pops as they headed to their cabins
to get longs and longs for the night's
evening activity. The day ended in a
Revolutionary War-themed game of
Capture the Flag!

At flag, the whole camp took a moment
to reflect on the day, our history as a
camp, and as a nation. Sam Saunders
and Daniel Tepler lowered the flag and
we all headed back to our cabins after a
busy and patriotic day.

OD: Mike Orr
July 5, 2013

Camp Kieve awoke on the 5th of July
to the sight of Madison Avenue and
advertising. The small, yet prestigious
firm of Orr, Zenker, Goodman & Nix had
taken over camp for the day in search of
a new junior partner. Four interns were
tested throughout the day to see who
had what it takes. At breakfast, Vern,
Hanna, Harrison, and Ben were asked to
compose a jingle for Polar Pure, the worst
one receiving Test duty. Colley's was by
far the weakest, not even attempting to
sing anything, and was given the task of
cleaning the many floors of the Test.

The morning went smoothly with
terrific raft skits in which each raft had
to reenact a TV commercial. The topics
ranged from Charmin to State Farm. The
next challenge for the interns was at
lunch where they had to create the most

refreshing drink they could. Although
all were delicious, Harrison's "Bloody
Harry" was the clear winner. At lunch,
it was announced that the EA would be
commercials, in which each cabin would
have to put on a skit to advertise a certain
product, such as a 4-Square Ball or Gold
Bond. The cabins spent rest period
rehearsing their ads.

Excellent chicken and rice was on
the menu for dinner as well as a great
salad bar. After a final pitch competition,
Harrison was named the new junior
partner of Orr, Zenker, Goodman&
Nix. As a reward, he was allowed to
sit on the panel with Trey, Ricky, and
Goodman to judge the commercials.
The ads were terrific and far surpassed
my expectations. Bank I's Wag Bag
commercial was great, especially Chase
Hedlund's narration. Other highlights
were NBH IFs Frank's Red Hot ad as well
as JKC's pitch for Coleman Stoves. All in
all, it was another amazing day at Kieve.
A place where someone can pretend to
be Don Draper and wear a jacket and tie
on a 90-degree day in July and nobody
questions their sanity.

OD: Ricky Nix
July 6, 2013

Where the Wild Things Are Day

The morning Max wore his wolf suit to
camp, he made mischief of one kind and
another. Today was that day, Max was
booted out of another Maine camp for
creating too much mischief, he was sent
to his room without dinner and when
he awoke, he was in the mystical land
where the wild things are, also known as
Kieve. The kids arrived at flag to find Max
hanging from the chains and swinging
around the pole. After explaining who he
was, he allowed Harry Bell and Brooks
Catlin to raise to flag. At breakfast. Max
showed a movie about how he came to
be at Camp Kieve. The naughty things
he did included sneaking into the Ritz,
eating snacks from the Buck, and sucking
on a lollipop on the back porch of the
Test.

While the boys at camp were having
fun, a group of the boys had sailed out
to the Strawberry Shortcake Shuffle.
Campers Charlie Riker, Chris Bassett,

76

Declan McCarthy, and Ben Clark were
the first boys to finish the race.

Back at camp, Test Duty consisted of a
game of sardines, a test duty which has
never been done before. After the boys
did their duties, they were sent to their
activities without any supper. At lunch
the Wild Things who inhabited the land
of Kieve swooped in to attack Max. Using
his cunning and wit. Max was able to
tame the Wild Things and was crowned
their king. He then urged all the other
children to become as wild as possible
for the rest of the day. The day became
wild and out of control. Children became
beasts and men became animals. For G-
Swim in the afternoon, the boys had to
come up with a skit that showed what
Max had done on his boat for over a year.
The skits were highly entertaining and
everyone had a great laugh.

The boys then went to dinner where
more wildness ensued. Dinner ended in
a long round of announcements followed
by the commencement of a Wild Rompus
for EA. Wild Rompus was very fun and
the kids all had a great time. The day
ended with the flag being lowered by
Charlie Riker and Angus (Taco) Bell. Mac
had a great day as a wild thing and so did
all the boys at Camp Kieve.

OD: Claire Mesrobian
July 7, 2013

Our first Sunday with JK could not
have brought finer weather. With the
sun shining and a cloudless blue sky.
Chase Mockridge and Luke Waters
of North Townsend raised the flag to
begin camp for the day. Campers and
counselors alike enjoyed the usual
Sunday pancake breakfast. After a fierce
egg toss competition between three
teams of counselors, we all headed off to
start cleaning our cabins. During Chapel,
counselor Ben Swanson gave a moving
speech about what courage, perseverance,
and loyalty have meant to him during his
time at Kieve. After inspection, the entire
camp enjoyed a meal of corn, grilled
chicken, and watermelon in the sun on
the porch of Pasquaney. Campers with
sisters at Wavus were taken to the other
camp to spend lunch with their siblings.
After rest hour, we took part in activities

such as swimming, pottery, art, tennis,
and the high ropes course.

The evening activity was the annual
Kieve Carnival, which featured bobbing
for apples, a slip and slide, pieing your
favorite counselor, and face painting.
After lots of laughter, music, and most of
all candy. Jack LaCasse and Jordan Orloff
of South Cunningham lowered the flag
and the campers headed off for a night of
well-deserved rest.

OD: John Goodman
July 8, 2013

From the personal reflections of Dr.
John H. Watson:

The morning of the eighth brought with
it heavy rain, and by the time everybody
arrived at 8:30 flag, the camp was rinsed
of the blood that had been shed that
morning. The sun was by then out, but
the scene with which I was greeted that
morning proved to be less transient
than the storm. I had awoken and come
to Pasquaney as usual, and there had
found the corpse of Sir Bradley Taylor, a
London tea mogul visiting Damariscotta
on business. Sir Bradley showed no
visible wounds, and immediately I could
tell that this was a job for my longtime
associate and friend, Mr. Sherlock
Holmes.

Ever since his supposed mutually
fatal confrontation with Professor
James Moriarty at Reichenbach Falls in
Switzerland last year. Holmes had been
keeping a low profile, living in Kieve's
boxsports shed. I was visiting him on
the eighth, as I often did when 1 got the
chance, and he took a quick interest in
the case of Sir Bradley's death as soon
as I told him the details. He and I raised
the flag and, after breakfast, revealed
what we knew so far to the campers.
Holmes's suspects: 1. Sir Bradley's
widow, Eliza Taylor, 2. his twin brother
and business partner, Rutherford Taylor,
3. the American businessman with
whom Sir Bradley had been meeting,
caffeine addict and tea mogul Mr. T.
Jay, 4. employee of Taylor Tea and tea
expert. Dr. Willard Phife, 5. Sir Bradley's
manservant Michael O'Hare, 6. Captain
Elliot Jenkins of the HMS MacNeille,
another employee of Taylor Tea, and 7.

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Congressman Zenker Mars, independent
Maine legislator.

Each cabin was given a mysterious
clue by Holmes' elusive older brother
Mycroftin the form of a cryptic telegram,
and each set about trying to solve the
crime. This goal became slightly easier at
Indian Circle, when Congressman Mars
unexpectedly collapsed, his mug of tea
falling from his hand. I confirmed that
he was dead. No trace of poison was
found in either the teabag or the water he
had used, and witnesses confirmed that
Mars had poured the tea himself, then
immediately drank it, leaving no time for
poison to be added. The mystery began
to unravel as campers enjoyed morning
activities - including a paddleboard
trip led by Brownie - and continued the
search for answers.

One cabin discovered Sir Bradley's last
will and testament, which left his entire
estate to his brother Rutherford, while
another investigated the mysterious
organization known as the Black Hand,
of which both Captain Jenkins and
Congressman Mars were members. Before
lunch. Bank One witnessed a mysterious
meeting between Michael O'Hare and
Rutherford Taylor, in which Rutherford
gave the manservant a note containing
the final orders of his deceased master.

During lunch, the plot thickened
further, as Inspector Lestrade of Scotland
Yard (an excellent cameo appearance by
adventure course director Rob Reilly)
arrived from London and revealed that
Sir Bradley was the subject of an ongoing
investigation for treason, having worked
with Irish nationalist groups in his tea
business. Some campers also began to
speculate that Dr. Phife may have been
behind a poisoning, and that Rutherford
and Eliza had been having an affair.
After rest hour came second Indian
Circle however, and Dr. Phife made an
announcement which was interrupted
by the rip of gunfire. Holmes tackled the
chemist to the ground to try to save him
- and though seriously wounded. Dr.
Phife survived the attack. He was moved
to the Infirmary's intensive care unit,
but the gunman escaped, leaving behind
a rifle with no fingerprints. Chris Yates
and the other campers of South Harris

found a useful document on Phife's
person, however, which revealed that
the Taylors had been working on a new
tea which contained chalcite, a chemical
which formed a deadly poison when
mixed with dinoxide.

Several young assisting detectives who
had conducted a search found a bottle of
dinoxide in the Pasquaney board game
closet. A questioning of Ritz counselor
Sam Fulgham revealed an airtight alibi
for Captain Jenkins, which led us to
conclude that the Black Hand had been
framed by the real killer. Soon G-Swim
came, and following some excellent
raft skits depicting speculation about
what was going on on Maine Trails, it
was time for dinner. After counselor
announcements. Holmes was finally
ready to reveal what he had deduced.
The question on everyone's mind: who
killed Sir Bradley Taylor? The shocking
answer: Sir Bradley himself. It was no
suicide, however - the dead body of "Sir
Bradley" was in fact that of his identical
twin Rutherford, and the man posing as
Rutherford was in fact Sir Bradley.

The note given to Michael O'Hare
at Innisfree had instructed him to kill
Willard Phife, who was coming too close
to the truth. Other than Phife, Sir Bradley
was the only one with the intimate
knowledge of tea needed to conceive of
the chalcite poison, and, by changing
places with his brother, he could escape
the treason investigation and inherit his
own business and fortune. Bradley had
put dinoxide in the water supply, which
had killed Rutherford when he drank
the chalcite tea, as well as accidentally
killing Zenker Mars when he happened
to try some of the same tea.

In the audience, Sir Bradley arose,
congratulating Holmes with bitter
sarcasm before, with a flash of sun
against metal, he hurled a throwing
knife at the great detective. He and I
exchanged fisticuffs before Holmes
slashed out his tendon, revealing that the
knife had only shattered the magnifying
glass in his breast pocket, leaving him
unharmed. Sir Bradley escaped with his
still loyal manservant however, leaving
it up to the campers to catch several of
his accomplices and thus determine his

79

80

location in the Evening Activity: a big
game of Manhunt.

The murderer was brought to justice,
and professional camp counselor John
Goodman lowered the flag with a few
words of wisdom to the camp , thus ending
a day of tangled mystery, innumerable
red herrings, and harrowing suspense of
the sort only found when a day involves
the likes of Sherlock Holmes.

OD: Nat Shenton
July 9, 2013

Today was a "Kieve Chef" competition,
where three counselor teams competed
against each other to become the "Kieve
Chef". The teams were made up of Cole
and Henry, Nolan and Ed, and, lastly,
Liza and Hannah. These teams were
announced at morning flag, where Alex
Maruszewski and Kieran Blunnie raised
the flag. During breakfast, the teams had to
prepare a meal using a secret ingredient,
which was tuna. Cole and Henry won the
breakfast by making a breakfast burrito
with a fruit salad. Liza and Hanna came
in second with a breakfast sandwich
with a hollandaise sauce. Ed and Nolan's
"French toast stick tuna melt" was not a
hit and was very disliked by the judges.

For lunch, the dice were rolled for a
camper sous-chef for each team. The
lucky winners were Will Uffleman,
Andrew Wilson, and Nic Valdez. At G-
Swim, Goodman and Drew's raft won the
skit of what Kieve would be like in ten
years, by including that Ricky would be
Tommy.

For the lunchtime meal. Cole and Henry
won again by creating a mac and cheese
using pepperoni given to them before the
start to the meal. Nolan and Ed came in
second this time with creating a simple
pizza bagel. Liza and Hanna's pepperoni
quiche turned out to be too much for
the judges to handle, so they came in
third for this leg of the competition.
After a couple of classic "yeses" while
the activities were announced, the sous-
chefs for dinner were decided. This time
Cameron Thompson, Oliver Firmenich,
Sam Kartsonis, Teddy Schoenholtz,
Jackson DaPuzzo, and Hayes Zierden
were all chosen.

After rest period the weather cooled

down quite a bit, but a group of campers
kept with the theme of the day and got
to test their cooking skills in a cooking
activity by making pizza and S'Mores.
Due to the weather there were no raft
skits at G-Swim.

The dinner competition was fierce
with Cole and Henry sweeping by
making a double barbecue cheeseburger
with hand-cut fries on the side (the secret
ingredient was a potato). Liza and Hanna's
breaded chicken and fried Snickers came
in second, and Ed and Nolan's grilled
cheese and tomato soup brought up the
rear. Cole and Henry became the "Kieve
Chef" of 1st session. The evening activity
was a big game of "De-Shenton" formally
known as Deception. The counselors
told outrageous stories and the campers
had to figure out who was lying and who
was telling the truth. North Cunningham
made it back just in time for flag where
Campbell Bell and Max Gilbert helped
lower it.

OD: Cole Phillips
July 10, 2013

We began the day with a much-needed
sleep-in. At morning flag, I announced
that today would be a normal Kieve
day with a slight twist: I announced the
raft skit theme in the morning so that
everyone could brainstorm all day. The
prompt for raft skits for the afternoon was
"John Goodman's upbringing." Then,
Will Earley and Nate Bartlett helped
raise the flag to begin the day.

The kids went to their activities
by cabin in the morning. The usual
suspects like board games, waterfront
activities and dodgeball were available.
Additionally, a couple cabins got to work
in the Kieve garden and tested their
skills as photographers. The kitchen staff
provided us with delicious wraps and
sandwiches for lunch.

That afternoon, a lucky group of kids
got to participate in a "Mystery Bus"
activity. Counselors Ricky and Liza took
13 kids to the Boothbay Mini Golf Masters
tournament for the afternoon. The
competition for the raft skits was raging
as well. Chase Wright stole the show
impersonating a young John Goodman,
bringing in the win for raft two.

81

At dinner I announced that the value of
gold had been skyrocketing throughout
the day, and so for the evening, we
v^ere all going to collect as much gold
as we could in a giant game of "Gold
Rush." Each cabin was competing to
find the greatest number of gold rocks.
Additionally, whoever found the golden
Voss bottle received ten extra points.
Cliff Belknap found the golden Voss
bottle, helping win the evening activity
for North Glenayr. To end the night, the
whole camp was treated to Round Top
ice cream before flag.

OD: Tucker Callanan
July 11, 2013
Ultimate Sports Day

As I looked around at flag the morning
of July 11th, I knew that my favorite day
had arrived. With campers wearing their
favorite sports jersey, from baseball to
basketball to football (although not many
Anthony Hernandez jerseys), I knew
it was going to be a day full of sports,
competition, and winning, a few of my
favorite things. I reminded the campers
before the day started that, although this
day celebrated the champions, the most
important thing was to give it your all
and not to be afraid of or discouraged
by failure. I left them all with one of my
favorite quotes that relates to that same
message. One of the best athletes of all
time, Michael Jordan once said "I've
missed more than 9,000 shots in my
career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26
times, I've been trusted to take the game
winning shot and missed. I've failed over
and over and over again in my life. And
that is why I succeed."

With that message to think about, the
campers headed down to breakfast in
Pasquaney, which was bumping sports
music and jock jams. After scarfing down
cereal and blueberry muffins and singing
along to songs such as "We will rock
you," it was time for the first competition
of the day.

All the competitions throughout the
day were set up in front of the whole
camp, and the contestants were chosen
randomly by rolling dice. The first, being
a corn-hole toss. With five campers
standing at the head of Pasquaney and the

whole camp watching, they took turns
tossing five bean bags at the Kieve corn-
hole on top of a table in the middle of the
room. After the five campers had tossed,
there was a three-way tie that resulted in
an incredibly suspenseful playoff round
between the three that came down to the
last toss. The winner got the option to
choose which counselors had to perform
"Test duty" that day.

The next competition came at Indian
circle, where five campers competed in
Kubb, the winner earning the right to
choose two counselors that had to go
on a private date at lunch, as well as the
first spot in line for their whole cabin at
dinner. Charlie Hollington was the big
winner, also winning it all on his last
toss, and chose the counselors Vern and
Louisa to go on the date.

Followingthe competition, the morning
was filled with classic Kieve sports such
as dodge ball, tennis, basketball, Kubb,
and football. Additionally, one camper
from each cabin was chosen to compete
in a 4-square tournament right before
lunch. Intensity filled the air as dozens
of spectators watched the two games of
4-square. As the bell for lunch rang, the
two winners, Lucas from North Glenayr
and Jeremy from North Harris received
"get out of G-swim free" cards as well as
the right for their whole cabins to be first
in line for lunch.

As Vern and Louisa shared a beautiful
and romantic lunch together, including
candles, flowers, a personal waiter, and
a surprise proposal by Vern, each cabin
competed in a sports trivia crossword
puzzle. The quickest cabin to finish,
South Glenayr, won the right to sign up
first for afternoon activities as well as
choose two counselors to do pain dives
at afternoon G-swim.

Following a much-needed rest period
after all the morning sports played,
campers again watched as 5 lucky
contestants had a Frisbee accuracy
competition. The winner received
popsicles for his whole cabin.

Sports again filled the afternoon and
everywhere you looked there were balls
being thrown or Frisbees zipping by.
For G-swim, the two lucky counselors
chosen by South Glenayr (Claire and

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Grambo) executed A-worthy pain dives.
To see who came in off the rafts first,
skits were performed on the prompt
"greatest moment in sports history". After
solid performances by all, raft 2 who
performed a near perfect speech from the
movie "Miracle on Ice" was chosen as
the winner. Before drying off, five more
randomly selected campers competed in
a good ole-fashioned swimming race with
Tucker Catlin from South Cunningham
coming out on top.

Before dinner, the whole camp was
open to qualify for the basketball knockout
competition, the only requirement being
you had to win a game before dinner.
Dozens competed before the dinner bell
rang, and the finals consisted of almost 20
campers. Throughout dinner randomly
chosen campers competed in a game
bouncing a tennis ball off of picnic tables
into trash cans, the winners receiving
ice cream. As everyone began to clean
up after dinner, a crowd began to form
around the basketball court to see the
basketball knockout finals. After an epic
final game in front of all of camp, with
the winner receiving ice cream for his
whole cabin, campers returned to their
cabins to prepare for the night's evening
activity. Ultimate Sports Night.

This night consisted of every sport
you could think of and let the campers
move freely from one activity to the next
as they chose. As the sun began to set
and campers grew tired from a day full
of competition, we gathered at the main
rock in order to lower the flag and hear a
final word about the day. All the winners
of the competitions were congratulated,
as well as all the other contestants. Every
single camper who was randomly rolled
accepted the challenge and gave it their
all, which was awesome to see. It was
great to see them all follow the advice
I gave earlier, to not be afraid of failure.
The speech was ended with a quote
that related to that message by Wayne
Gretzky,"You always miss 100% of the
shots you don't take".

You learn something new every day
at Kieve, and I hope that this day taught
the campers not to be afraid to try new
things, and giving it their all is the only
thing that matters.

OD: Ned Beckwith
July 12, 2013

There was a bittersweet feeling in
the air as we raised the flag on July the
12th. It was the last full day for all 50
plus JKers, but they were finishing up an
awesome ten days, and their departure
also signified the return of several older
cabins that had been away from camp
for a long time. Before the flag raising,
I urged everybody to consider the idea
of Kieve as extended family, and how
much stronger that feeling of family
becomes by coming back year after year.
After Sam Nassif and Nick Huber helped
me raise the flag, we all trekked down to
Pasquaney for breakfast.

During breakfast, an argument arose
between two classy ladies from the Long
Island area and two classy ladies from the
Jersey Shore area. Shots were fired from
both sides, but we all just tried to focus
on our food and not pay them too much
attention. When the time came for Test
duty, I set up five chairs, called up six
lucky counselors, plugged in the timeless
"Down Under" by Men At Work, and had
the six chosen counselors slowly walk in
a circle around the five chairs until the
music turned off. The game got extremely
physical and when the dust settled, Ed
Haubenreiser, leading participant of Test
Duty for the entire summer, was the last
one standing (or sitting) but somehow
ended up with Test duty regardless.

Indian Circle was hot and humid but
we powered through and all got excited
for the assigned morning activities.
Arguments between the two groups of
ladies persisted throughout the periods.
For once. General Swim was welcomed
with open arms by the majority of
campers, and everyone hurried down
to try and get into the water as soon as
possible. To determine which raft swam
in first, I wanted to see a reenactment of
a famous moment in cinematic history.
The Lion King, Forrest Gump, and the
Lion King again were represented, but
in the end, a poignant take on the final
scene from The Notebook won me over,
and Raft 1 won the honors of swimming
in first.

Lunch, rest period, and afternoon
activities came and went, and word

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started to spread around camp that
in order to get into dinner, bouncers
would need to approve of your outfit.
With that knowledge, campers started
popping up around Pasquaney looking
uncharacteristically clean and fancy.
The picnic tables outside were set up
in long straight lines with table clothes
and flowers, and Pasquaney itself had
morphed into an Italian restaurant under
the name of Pasqualio's. Appetizers
were served, garlic bread was enjoyed,
and in the end the representatives from
Long Island and from Jersey Shore
arrived to dine together, and form one
big Kieve family all enjoying each other's
company.

To cap off an awesome day, I got to
announce that we would be sending
JK out with one final Capture the Flag
battle. After everybody was able to digest
a little bit, the light team walked down
to defend Harriet House and the darks to
Westcott Point. Despite all of the action,
a Kieve tie was the final score, and we
all walked up to the flag pole sweaty but
satisfied. During my brief flag lowering
words, I tried to convey to the boys how
much Kieve has become an essential
part of my personal "family," and how
they are all lucky enough to have an
opportunity to gain the amazing love and
support that our community provides. I
hope everybody enjoyed first session
Pasqualio's 2013 half as much as I did,
and thank you to all those that helped
and participated.

OD: Drew Lincoln
July 13, 2013

After 10 days of incredible fun and
craziness, the 5 cabins of Junior Kieve
would have to say goodbye for the
summer. Outside of Junior Kieve leaving,
today would mark the multiplication of
camp with four separate cabins returning
from their long trips - South Harrington,
Bank II and Allagash I and II. With such
a small camp in numbers beginning
the day, the unofficial theme would be
a relaxed and 'chill' mood, away from
the usual high energy and craziness a
common Kieve day includes. The overall
message at flag was to sadly say goodbye
to the JKers while also embracing the final

week left in camp. North Cunningham
campers Finn Johnston and Henry Kenney
raised the flag to start the chilly day off
correctly. We enjoyed a nice breakfast
which included lots of blueberry muffins
and Jack Johnson music. The mood was
relaxed and 'cool' as everyone enjoyed
their breakfast without it turning into a
dance party.

For Test duty, a classic challenge of
Frozen T-Shirts was brought back. Vern
Van Oot, Ed Haubenreiser, Garret Jensen
and Ricky Nix battled to defrost their t-
shirts by slamming them onto the floor
to eventually thaw them out. Ricky came
in first while Vern had trouble and was
'awarded' Test Duty. An extended duty
period followed, where every cabin
cleaned their cabin and surrounding area
frilly.

Morning activities began around late
morning where sailing, the high-speed
swing, kickball, fishing and pirates were
all open for the camp. The 'chill' mood
continued throughout the day, as the sun
beaded down, making the waterfront
the place to be. A late General Swim
followed after two hours of morning
activities with, again, a small numbered
camp, with JK now gone. Today was
definitely a day where everyone wanted
to be in the water and General Swim was
actually extended because of the heat.
Given the history of Kieve, Saturdays
have also been appropriately named
'Pain Dive Saturdays'. For skits to come
in first for G-Swim, the prompt was to
create a 'Song and Dance skit' that had to
incorporate a pain dive. Two renditions
of the 'Harlem Shake' and a Miley Cyrus
song later, the winner was a skit of 'Don't
Stop Believing' by Journey with a few
phenomenal pain dives.

For lunch we had pizza and that vibe
of 'chill' continued as the camp still
remained small in numbers. Rest period
followed, extending the definition of
chill into a further realm. The weather
remained constantly beautiful into
the afternoon as activities begun with
sailing, swimming, pirates, printing,
FROLF (Frisbee Golf), tennis, soccer,
and archery. General swim offered some
entertainment with the skit prompt being:
'Reason JK had to leave today (besides

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the obvious reason)'. Many ideas came
about, including that the JK campers had
been stealing all of the ice cream and
JK campers were insider spies to a rival
camp; however, the winner was the skit
performing a JK Zombie attack. Dinner
followed with rice, pork and vegetables.
The chill mode was still constant as
camp was still small in numbers. For
the Evening Activity, the camp played a
camp wide game of 'Ultimate OTB (Off-
Track Betting)'. For this activity there
were 6 different staff competitions spread
out through camp. Each cabin would
vote on who they believe would win
each competition. The first competition
was trailer-parking where counselors
John Goodman and Henry Wagner had
to park a trailer between two cones.
The competition was close and comical
(considering Goodman is a notoriously
terrible driver); however, Henry came
out on top.

We all then watched FROLF gurus
Neddy Beckwith and Graham Abbey face
off against each other in the first 3 holes.
The matchup was not disappointing and
the intensity was at an all time high.
Neddy and Graham both shot-birded the
first two holes making it come down to
the final third hole. A great drive from
both of them, however, Neddy pulled it
off with a miraculous forehand shot to
win it as the hush of the camp turned
into a roar as he made his final shot.

Next we moved to the tennis courts
where Louisa Lawton and Ryan
Cholnoky faced against Emily Gabriel
and Ben CoUey. An overall slow match,
the winners in a series of best of 3 games,
Lawton and Cholnoky, won it in the final
game.

We then all went back up the hill to
see Chris Mackey and Tucker Callanan
match up in a canoe portage. While
Mackey clearly had the size and strength,
it was Tucker's speed that put him on top
to win it all.

We quickly moved over to the black
top and country club area where two
competitions occurred simultaneously.
Mimi Middlebrooks and C.J. Richardson
played in an intense matchup of
Kubb against Sam Fulgham and Ed
Haubenreiser. Middlebrooks and

Richardson cruised through their
opponents with Mimi carrying the
team like a pro. On the other side of the
court a staff-wide game of knockout was
being played. The overall favorites were
Tucker Callanan, Evan Kantor and Ryan
Cholnoky. The game came down to a nail
biter between both Kantor and Cholnoky,
but Cholnoky finished the job with a
fade away jumper to swish his way to
victory.

We gathered to flag afterwards where
Spencer Sapir and Victor Rego of
North Cunningham lowered the flag. A
relatively calm day at Kieve with pockets
of excitement but the change of pace was
nice from a usual Kieve day.

CD: Liza Schmidt
July 14, 2013

It was the last Sunday of first session
and a perfect day for the Kieve Derby.
Counselors appeared at the top of the
hill in their finest derby apparel. OD
Liza Schmidt chose North Glenayrians
Ben Clark and Brooks Catlin to raise the
flag to start the day. After breakfast, the
horse owners introduced their horses:
Ricky Nix and CJ "Get off my lawn
before I smack your behind" Richardson;
Evan Kantor and Max "Money bags of
money" Harmon; Tucker Callanan and
Tyler "Steve" Hill; Jake Rockefeller and
Nick "Rocky" Sanchez; and Janie Rardin
and Ed "Vacation Home" Haubenreiser.
The owners talked up their pedigree and
bragged about their horses, too. For Test
duty, the horses competed in a jumping
competition. Max Harmon stole the show
by jumping over five feet.

During Chapel, several campers read
passages from the camp chapel books,
including Dan Schechter, Wes Dixon,
and Jack LaCasse. Counselor Graham
Abbey gave an amazing chapel speech
about the "Kieve bubble" and how love
is what makes it such a special place. He
reminded us to bring that love~for each
other, for nature, and our community-
-to the rest of our lives throughout the
year. After a grueling inspection by
Tommy and Walter, everyone enjoyed
the traditional Sunday lunch of barbecue
chicken and corn.

Veterinarian John Goodman inspected

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the horses for illegal doping and
announced them all clean. It was a
scorching afternoon and the waterfront
was packed with pirates, swimmers,
fisherman and paddle boarders. After
a leisurely cookout dinner, a surprise
last-minute candidate joined the race:
Henry Clark and Mac "Macretariat"
Keyser. Campers Clarence Cox, Lucas
Falezan, Vedant Kiyawat, Brooks Catlin,
and Burnham Johnston were chosen as
camper jockeys for the big race.

For the evening activity, everyone
trekked down to the Harriet House
racetrack. Max Harmon and jockey,
Lucas Falezan, came in first for a big
win and were presented with a "rose"
wreath. Then, each cabin competed in
relay races themselves in training for
next year's derby. It was utter chaos, but
laughter rang across the field. At evening
flag, Liza thanked everyone for a great
final Sunday, and reminded them that
each day that followed would be the last
one this siunmer. Finally, Harry Bell and
Vedant Kiyawat helped lower the flag to
end the day.

OD: Vern Van Oot
July 15, 2013

With it being the beginning of the final
week for the campers of first session, I
decided it would be a nice change of
pace to have a relaxed normal Kieve
day. To emphasis the relaxed part of
the theme, the counselors were asked to
wear Hawaiian shirts and the dinner was
luau themed. The menu for the night was
grilled pork with pineapples and salsa.

Howell Baker and Tucker Catlin from
South Cunningham raised the flag. It
was a unique day for the session because
five of the younger cabins were at the
beach (North Glenayr, North Townsend,
South Cunningham, and South Harris)
and North Cunningham was at the
Snowgoose. Along with that, South
Bunkerhill and South Glenayr were still
gone on their trips, which South Glenayr
was set to return from later in the day.
With all those cabins gone and Trails,
Bank I & III, and the Long Voyages still
on trips, it left Allagash I, II, & III, Bank
II, South Harris, South Harrington, and
North Bunkerhill II (the only cabin from

lower cabin row) at camp. As Charlie
told the kids during the morning Indian
Circle, it was a day for the campers of the
Gashes and Bank II to be campers again.

For the Allagashes and Bank I it was
one of their last chances to do G-Swim
again while North Bunkerhill I rotated
off the Gash raft with North Harris and
then South Harrington. The planned
relaxation-themed went very smoothly
with Country Club, Swimming,
Advanced Climbing, and Mike Orr's
newly introduced Shenanigans 2.0 as the
most sought out afternoon activities.

While it was a small camp during the
day, it was a very large camp at night. All
the cabins that were gone on day trips
returned late afternoon along with South
Glenayr. The dinner menu was a hit. All
the campers had a chance to hang out,
play Frisbee and four square outside of
Pasquaney. With it being a large camp
at night, it was decided that Color Wars
would be a good Evening Activity. The
older cabins played at the Harriet House
field while the younger cabins played at
the soccer field.

At flag I spoke about my experience
so far at Kieve being a first year Junior
Counselor without any camp experience
and how Kieve 's motto of Courage,
Perseverance, and Loyalty has helped me
succeed during my short time here, as it
should for any camper. Bobby Gould and
Dodge Woloson lowered the flag which
was followed by the Kieve Song.

OD: Ed Haubenreiser
July 16, 2013

The theme today was "dice day", an
entertaining day for campers to watch
their counselors either pray for mercy
or cheer in thanksgiving. From the time
flag is raised to the final bell at the end
of the evening activity, a dice is rolled
periodically to assign counselors to
various roles.

At the day's commencement, the
given roles proved to be nothing short
of necessary: Greg Ferland was chosen
to raise the flag and bestow words of
wisdom upon the current in-campers,
Henry Wagner was picked to say grace
during breakfast and coordinate through
duties and announcements, and I was

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so carefully selected to write this report.
But as the day went on, the process of
role-choosing, as well as the type of role,
became a hilarious event that created the
reason as to why campers enjoyed this
day so much.

Examples of these roles were seen
during the counselor announcements
that followed after breakfast: Henry Coote
was chosen to translate Emily Carney's
Italian, Nalgenes were duct taped to Eli
Campbell's hands to demonstrate the
importance of hydration, Tyler Hill was
chosen to be the hero of the day while
Hanna Wiegers was picked to be the
villain, Henry Arcano was chosen to be
Henry Kelly's bodyguard, and so on.

Similar antics occurred during the
announcements that followed lunch.
Roles chosen at this time included
T.J. Feagan having to apply aloe to my
sunburnt back, Ricky Nix having to be
Eli Campbell's hands due to his daylong
role chosen at breakfast, Ben Colley and
Nolan Doyle having to do an improvised
dance to a song chosen by Emily Gabriel,
and others.

The final roles were chosen during
counselor announcements after dinner.
These included myself and Mimi
Middlebrooks having to unload the
recently-done laundry bags out of
vans, Henry Coote deciding the night's
E.A., and Vern van Oot having to be
Trey Zenker's caddy. After a daylong
extravaganza of role-choosing and dice-
rolling, it was time for the evening
activity, which Henry Coote chose to be
a mixture of hide-and-seek and escape to
freedom.

As per usual, the day ended with the
lowering of the flag and singing of the
Kieve song, capping off another fantastic
day of this first session of the summer and
another successful day of the infamously
themed "dice day."

OD: Henry Clark and Louis Cusano
July 17, 2013

After staying up late filming our movie,
Henry and 1... that is Louis and Clark,
woke up early to raise the flag in our
matching old school clothing. By 7:30
a.m. it was already getting hot as the sun
began to rise over Lake Damariscotta. At

flag, Clark and I unveiled our expedition
to move west taking only the Kieve
"Elite" with us on our journey. Because
we planned to take only the best of the
best with us on our journey west, we
were hoping the competition and rivalry
would be intense throughout the day. We
had Jose and Brady raise the flag and the
tableboys headed down to Pasquaney.
Before eating breakfast, we played our
film for the campers highlighting the main
rivalries of the day... Chef Vern v. Chef
Mackey... Indians v. Explorers... Trippers
V. Country Club... and Sacagawea v. Lady
Chastity.

After breakfast, the cabins spent the
morning competing against each other
in activities like football, Frisbee, dodge
ball, etc. During G-swim, Clark and I
were thoroughly entertained by the raft
skits. The campers acted out what item/
person they would bring on their journey
west if they were lucky enough to join.

At lunch, the rivalries became more
heated as announcements were made.
Rest hour took longer than expected
because camp was finally getting big
again and afternoon activity sign-ups
took forever. The afternoon activities
ran smoothly as the Long Voyage cabins
helped Clark and I set up for WWE night.
Afternoon G-Swim was much needed
after the hot and sweaty afternoon.

We all ate dinner outside barbeque style
around the WWE ring listening to music
and throwing Frisbees. The after-dinner
announcements heated up the rivalries
and Henry and I got the WWE fights
underway by disagreeing on who to bring
on our voyage and deciding that the only
way to make our final decision would be
through the outcomes of the fights that
night. The first fight was the Indians v.
the Explorers. The Indians prevailed in
a close fight with the help of their god.
Next up was Lady Chastity v. Sacagawea.
This time, the Indians could not prevail
and Sacagawea lost in an intense fight.
We took a quick intermission after the
Sacagawea fight to raffle of a couple
prizes and listen to Trey and Morrow's
version of "Campers in Paris." Morrow
killed it as he always does. We ended the
intermission as the Trippers and Country
Club members entered the ring for their

90

fight. This fight started out intense, but
ended in a truce as both groups agreed
they did not like fighting. The last and
biggest fight started immediately after
featuring, JC legend, Vernon Van Oot and
food hobbyist, Chris Mackey. This fight
also started out extremely intense but
ended in truce over the love for bacon.

Clark and I thought the fighting was
over and we would head up to flag,
but the kids wanted to see a final fight
between the two of us. This fight also
ended in a truce and the announcement
that we were cancelling our trip out west
because we loved Kieve exactly the way
it was in Maine.

At flag, Hackett's Long Voyage cabin
rolled in and everyone celebrated. Clark
and I ended the day with the message that
no matter what kind of fights or rivalries
occur throughout the day, everyone is
always on the same team as we lower the
flag at night... One love. Andrew Binder
and Chase Kim Wright lowered the flag.
Overall, great day!

CD: Trey Zenker
July 18, 2013

Camp Kieve woke to a glorious and
sunny morning on July 18, 2013 where
campers Nate Bartlett and Aidan Tierney
of the legendary North Cunningham
cabin raised the flag. After a classic
American breakfast of eggs and bacon,
the camp assembled for Indian Circle
where I promised to drink one cup of
coffee for every twenty-five qualifications
achieved. Following Indian Circle, all
activities were available and many a
tournament occurred.

At general swim, the camp was
surprised by the arrival of Maine Trails I
and II via sea kayaks. After being away for
over twenty days, they were welcomed
with great enthusiasm by campers and
counselors alike. By lunchtime, the camp
had achieved over two hundred and fifty
qualifications, causing me to rapidly
consume ten cups of coffee on stage.

The preliminary stages of the Kubb,
Frisbee golf, and dodge ball tournaments
had consumed most of the morning
and championship rounds were set for
the afternoon. Ultimately, Conor Boyle
and Andrew Hennessy of Allagash II

proceeded to win the highly prestigious
Kubb tournament just before dinner in
front of a crowd of over seventy-five
campers. Though when playing against
Caleb Conner, Jeff Coote, and Sam Pinsky,
the Kubb champions of 2012, our new
champions lost in a highly competitive
and impressive game. Additionally,
Philip Kaplan, Bo O'Connor, Gates Van
der Wolk, Reed Vanacore, and Aidan
York of North Bunkerhill II won the
dodge ball competition and with it, the
Golden Nut trophy. Yliuz Sierra Marin
of South Harris and Thomas Falezan
of North Harris teamed up to win the
World Cup tournament while Andrew
Binder, George Cole, Toofs Rowland,
and Mac Stevens from the Allagash III
cabin all won the Woodshop Indie 500
Inches Classic. Lastly, Will DeMuth of
the Allagash I cabin won the prestigious
Frisbee golf championship with a
phenomenal round that will surely go
down in Kieve history.

At dinner, we tallied two hundred
and fifty more qualifications, again
causing me to rapidly drink ten cups.
After dinner, the camp broke up into
three smaller campfire groups where
the boys were able to reflect upon their
trips and share their Kieve experiences
as a whole. A terrific show of fireworks
came at around 9 PM when Kieve and
Wavus met at the waterfront. Believe me
when I say that most towns would envy
the display seen on Lake Damariscotta
that night. Lastly, Kieve and Wavus met
at the flag pole where both camps sang
their respective songs before the flag
was lowered and the official day came
to an end. It was a proud day at Camp
Kieve. The family was finally completely
reunited.

CD: Ricky Nix, John Goodman,

Mike Orr, & Liza Schmidt
July 19, 2013
Aqua-Attack

Arrested Development vs. Game of
Thrones

As the sun rose over the Damariscotta
Lake, the children of the Kingdom of
Pasquan rose to greet the day ahead.
Upon arriving to flag, they were met by
King Eider Pasquan who told them that

91

something terrible has been happening
in their kingdom and that they would
learn more at breakfast. The heat was
stifling and the children were restless.
They were met at breakfast with a movie.
This movie outlined the internal trouble
in the Kingdom of Pasquan.

The Royal Bacon Store, where bacon
(currency) was held, had reached critical
levels and it had come to the attention
of the king that one of the Lords of the
five houses (Swamp, Innisfree, Westcott,
Kistler, and Bluth) had been stealing the
bacon. As the movie progressed, we were
introduced to all the Lords and their
families. The Swamp Lord was a total
freak. The real intrigue was that House
Bluth of Orange County had been the
ones stealing the bacon and had been for
years. Through a series of well-made puns
and jokes we find that the king knows he
made a huge mistake in executing one of
the other Lords and blaming everyone
but the family from Orange County. After
the movie, a prayer was said by Brother
Arcano and Brother Mikor.

The children were sent to their morning
duties and were greeted at Indian Circle
by Maeybe and George-Michael who were
working in the banana stand. After Lord
Westcott and his brother Lord Kistler
put their differences aside, Maeybe and
George-Michael killed Lord Westcott for

cutting off the hand of their Uncle Buster.
He was killed via banana to the face.
After activities, the children watched the
execution of Mikor, the king's spy. He
was missed greatly by all Lords.

At lunch, Michael decided he would
tear down the banana stand, which was
a symbol of his oppressed childhood.
After doing this his father attacked him
because there's "always bacon in the
banana stand," 50,000 sheets to be exact.
To settle the fight the King gathered his
lords and Michael gathered his family
to rally them into war against each
other. Just as the violence was about to
break out. International Film Star Carl
Weathers showed up and suggested
they settle their differences through A
BIG GAME OF AQUA ATTACK! This
was agreed upon and a tremendous
game ensued. The Bluths won, and in
celebration a barbeque was held in their
honor at Harriet House. Burgers were
cooked, jokes were made, and chants
could be heard across the lake.

Longs and longs were donned as the
entire camp headed to Kistler Point for
the final bonfire. Many tears were shed
and the flag was lowered on the last full
day of first session 2013. For whatever
future feuds in camp next year we leave
you with these words: There's always
bacon in the banana stand (click click).

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Second Session OD Reports

OD: Charlie Richardson
July 23, 2013

Opening day Second Session

Neither the wind nor the rain could
contain the energy and excitement that
were marked by the arrival of our second
session campers. The first camper to
arrive was our very own Dan Schechter,
who wasted no time heading over to
activities. As campers continued to roll
in, the riflery and archery ranges began
to crowd, there was not a harness to
spare at the climbing wall, chants of "GA
GA BALL" echoed from Innisfree, and a
few brave campers even faced the wind
and the rain to play the first Frolf game of
the session. At 3 o'clock, we enjoyed an
ice cream social with everyone's favorite
Round Top ice cream.

After the bus arrived we had a
spaghetti dinner which ended with a
pasta collision between counselors Mac
Keyser, Mimi Middlebrooks, Luke Ross,
Claire Heinichen, and Lauren Cardenas,
who then taught us how to use the "In"
and "Out" doors in Pasquaney. For
evening activities. Upper and Lower
cabins split and played their own games
of Entourage. South Glenayr campers
Brooks Walker and Gunnar Young
lowered the flag to end a great first day
of camp.

OD: Graham Abbey
July 24, 2013

We had an excellent start to the first
full day of Second Session 2013. After
I delivered a brief message about the
importance of cooperation, I was assisted
in raising the flag by North Glenayr's very
own Nick Donaldson and Ben Talpey.
After breakfast and duties, we took the
camp photo at the top of the hill. All
were out in their finest costumes. The
island swim was a remarkable success,
with many campers overcoming the
adversity of the 500-yard swim, and all
participants giving it an honest try.

At lunch and dinner, tension escalated
regarding a dispute between the Frisbee
Golf and Kan Jam crews, but fortunately,
we were able to resolve our differences

with a brilliant game of Capture the Flag.
When the dust settled, it came out a Kieve
Tie. At flag, I emphasized the importance
of the cabin unit over the individual,
and encouraged the campers to put their
faith and trust in their cabinmates. Pablo
Garza and Brock Froschauer lowered the
flag. It was a wonderful day.

OD: C.J. Richardson
July 25, 2013

The day started with the campers
walking up to flag and wondering what
was the theme for the day. They quickly
found out that the theme was Amazing
Race Day. The eight teams were Alexa and
Evan, Luke and Henry, Jake and Andy,
Ricky and Julia, Mike and Ed, Ryan and
Nolan, Lauren and Claire, and Jamie and
Chris. Each cabin was assigned one team
to cheer for and if they won they would
receive an ice cream prize the next day
at lunch.

Throughout the day there were
competitions that the teams took part in.
Some of the funniest competitions were
the water-moving contest, where the
teams could only transport water using
their mouths, and a canoe sprint. By the
end of the day it came down to three
teams, Alexa and Evan, Luke and Henry,
and Ed and Mike. Due to unexpected
rain, the challenge was switched up and
it all came down to rock/paper/scissors.
In the end, Alexa and Evan won and
became Kieve 's first ever Amazing Race
Champions. South Bunkerhill was the
cabin assigned to them and was given
their ice cream prize.

OD: Roscoe Wetlaufer
July 26, 2013

Gray skies over Kieve started out our
day, as the boys of Allagash III raised
the flag. Campers were about to head
to breakfast, when lo, a youngster
almost wandered into the tall grass. Ash
Ketchum was rescued from his grisly
fate by none other than myself. Professor
Oak, and Pokemon day had begun. At
breakfast, my grandson's name was
forgotten, and almost falsely remembered

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as Gary. After a delightful meal, the first
round of "Whose that Pokemon!?!" was
enjoyed, and trivia decided Test duty.
Morning activities included classics
such as wood, adventure, nature, photo,
and print shop.

During lunch. Ash's story continued
as he teamed up with Rock Gym leader
Brock. The afternoon moseyed on in a
drizzly manner, but the fun was never
hampered. And after dinner, a brand new
Evening Activity got to try on its running
shoes. In teams of six, campers served as
Pokemon for their counselors/trainers,
traveling to eight gyms across camp.
Collecting badges, battling gym leaders,
and healing up at Innisfree, the kids
embraced the night wholeheartedly.

At flag, I spoke of finding a way to align
the niches Kieve provides with your own
interests. A winning team of six lowered
the flag and the boys hit the hay, rounding
out yet another expectational Kieve day.

OD: Trey Zenker
July 27, 2013

We woke up on the first Saturday of
camp to beautiful weather and the exciting
news that we would be hosting the Kieve
Idol musical competition! Counselors
competed all day for the prestigious title
of Kieve Idol, participating in singing
competitions left and right! Test duty
involved a musical duet competition, in
which teams of counselors sang in front
of the camp before being judged by the
Henry Coote Applause-O-Meter.

Afterward, the younger cabins in
camp hopped in vans and headed over
to Wavus for the annual "Burgers and
Bikes" celebration of veterans. The vets
finish a motorcycle parade by revving
their engines down the Wavus driveway,
which was lined with American flags
and smiling happy campers. Burgers
were an instant hit with the veterans
and campers from both camps, and soon
enough everyone reconvened at boys'
camp for a musical afternoon.

The older boys in camp spent the time
singing Karaoke and watching Aqua
Attack Theater. The field of competitors
narrowed further during competitions
at General Swim and then dinner, until
it was down to Amaury Du jar din, John

Marsh, Zach Atchinson, and Graham
Abbey.

After spending free time and rest
hour working on their skits, each cabin
was excited to show off their Air Guitar
performances after dinner. Donning their
best crazy costumes, each cabin took
the stage of Innisfree to show off what
they'd been working on all day. Except
for a couple technical difficulties caused
by watery orange mocha frappucinos,
everyone enjoyed the rest of cabins
skits. South Glenayr's "Kangaroo Dance"
was impressive as the kids hopped
around the stage, and North Bunkerhill's
performance of "Call On Me" was truly
awe-inspiring.

The finale of the Kieve Idol contest
saw Zach overtake Graham on the
Applause-O-Meter, and he was crowned
Kieve Idol before the stage was finally
set for the world famous Ritz Skit. While
technical difficulties plagued the ladies'
performance at the beginning, they were
eventually able to get the music on and
dance their hearts out before we headed
out the door to the flagpole. As we ended
this beautifully musical day on top of
the hill, Andy Spiers and Pablo Galarza
helped lower the flags before we returned
to our cabins for a well-earned night of
sleep.

OD: Claire Mesrobian
July 28, 2013

Our first Sunday of second session
greeted us with cloudy skies and slightly
chilly weather, but we were determined
to adapt to the less than desirable
conditions. Colton and Sebastian of
South Bunkerhill raised the flag to kick
off the day. Breakfast was the usual
Sunday menu of pancakes, which were
thrown by counselors onto campers'
waiting plates. Janie Warnock, Julia
Shepley, Spencer Ward, Vern Van Oot,
Nick Merriam, and Andy Lynch were
tasked with creating poems about Kieve
for Test Duty. After breakfast and duties,
campers headed off to start cleaning their
cabins for inspection, which included a
special guest judge - longtime counselor
Jack Reis.

At chapel, Pierce Leonard, one of the
newest additions to the Kieve family, gave

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a moving speech about his experience
at Kieve so far. Our delicious lunch
consisted of barbeque chicken, corn,
and watermelon. Campers with sisters at
Wavus were boated over to enjoy lunch
with their siblings.

After a relaxing rest hour, campers
enjoyed activities such as pirates,
printing, pottery, Frolf, archery, and even
a canoe trip. Following general swim,
counselors grilled up a delicious dinner
for all of camp.

The evening activity was the annual
Kieve Casino Night! Campers participated
in a costume contest, played card games,
and even enjoyed a magician. The surprise
of the night came when the female staff
performed the Ritz Skit, which had been
cut short due to technical difficulties
the night before. Ben Norman and Jack
O'Donnell of South Bunkerhill lowered
the flag to end another great, although
rainy, day at Kieve.

OD: Andy Lynch
July 29, 2013

After a sleep-in, the day kicked off
when I introduced myself as Randall
Lynch, a talent scout for Kieve Record
Company. Kieve Record Company hired
me to find the best rapper from the city
of Kieve to sign a record deal and receive
"The Golden Record."

Drew Grennon a.k.a DJ Railroad was
dropping beats in his big DJ booth set up
inside Pasquaney at breakfast. For Test
duty, I introduced all 6 rappers competing
for the prize: Johnny Applecore (Jake
Lynch), Cringle McCringleBerry (Chris
Mackey), Old Money (Trey Zenker),
Pierce the Pirate (Pierce Leonard),
Zach Atchinson, and the Insane Kieve
Posse (Vern V, Jamie P, Emily C). All
6 contestants had their own distinct
personalities and outfits to portray their
rapper. The first competition was a
free style by each rapper. Chris Mackey
had a poor showing and clearly lost
according to the plausometer, but was
not eliminated from the competition.

DJ Railroad "laid down the tracks"
all of lunch while some guest rappers
shared their talents. The first elimination
challenge took place at lunch. There
were three rap battles between Pierce

the Pirate and Insane Kieve Posse, Old
Money and Johnny Applecore, and
Cringle McCringleBerry and Zach. After
very impressive performances by all the
rappers, Pierce the Pirate, Old Money
and Zach advanced to the final rap
performance at dinner.

The theme was kept up throughout the
afternoon with the raft skit at G Swim
being Kieve Tripping in the Ghetto. At
dinner, I reintroduced the rappers and
displayed the golden record. The three
rappers all had A+ rap performances with
genius lyrics and dece flow. Henry Coote
came up as the plausometer to judge the
performances. Zach and Pierce ended
in a tie. For sudden death, they each
dropped one line. Zach Atchinson came
out on top until Cringle McCringleBerry
disrupted the awards ceremony with a
machine gun and stole the golden record.
All three rappers fled the scene and the
camp played a big game of Escape to
Freedom.

OD: Cole Phillips
July 30, 2013

July 30th began like many other days
at Kieve, 8 o'clock flag. But with the
recent departure of my best friend Nat
Shenton on a 14-day excursion through
the Allagash lakes, I made it evident that
he would not be forgotten. The Rodgers
brothers, Tyler and Perry, raised the
flag on the Shenton Memorial Day. At
breakfast we had French toast sticks and
plenty of bagpipes on the stereo. All the
staff wore black but the focus of the day
was to not dwell on the past but celebrate
what you once had and then move on.

The raft skit in the morning was a two-
scene skit about Nat's first day in South
Glenayr in 2002. Lunch came and went
and, with such a small camp (only four
cabins), every person got his first pick at
activities. Ricky ran a mystery bus and
Henry Clark ran a double period stand-
up paddleboard trip to a shallow cove of
Lake Damariscotta and snorkeled with a
group of eight.

After dinner, in memory of the Shenton
Fund, we played a huge game of Gold
Rush. The object of the game is to find
golden rocks all around camp and bring
them to the bank in front of Pasquaney.

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Miraculously, the two teams (North
Glenayr, South Townsend, and North
Cunningham vs. South Bunkerhill,
North Bunkerhill, and South Harrington)
tied. With a Kieve tie at hand there
was no better way to congratulate both
teams than ice cream from Round Top.
Lowering the flag were Jack Roberts and
Parker Swensrud.

OD: Ricky Nix
July 31, 2013

Press any button to start. Daybreak.
The sun rose over Kieve, but imagine
Kieve in 1999 and everyone is a character
from a Nintendo 64. Mario (me) and my
brother Luigi Clark were waiting for the
campers to arrive at flag. The flag was
raised by the Murrell twins and everyone
went to breakfast. During breakfast
announcements the campers met
Princess Peach and Toad. Princess Peach
was my girlfriend and Toad was her
strange helper. It was then that Bowser,
my archenemy, decided to descend upon
Pasquaney and take Princess Peach for
himself, his motives were unclear and
somewhat sketchy. That's when Luigi
and I vowed to hunt him down, kill him
(by jumping on his head) and save my
girlfriend.

For Test duty several of the characters
were brought up and made to play Mario
Tennis, Donkey Kong was the winner
and everyone else had Test duty. At
Indian Circle the cabins played each
other in rounds of rock, paper, scissors.
The winners made the order in which
they could go up and receive a prize
from the mystery boxes that were on
the porch. The prizes included first at
dinner, lunch, pick a counselor to pain
dive, and others.

During lunch my brother and I thought
we had found Bowser's castle and
Princess Peach, but instead we found our
cousin Wario who had taken Princess
Daisy and was holding her hostage. After
defeating him and saving Daisy, they both
decided to help us on our quest to find
Princess Peach. At second Indian Circle
the campers got to vote on one counselor
to win our version of Mario Cart. The
winner of Mario Cart was Toad.

At dinner that night we finally found

Peach and Bowser. Bowser was destroyed
by a fireball, which was shot directly at
his face! In celebration we had a BIG
GAME OF MARIO PARTY!!!! It was so
much fun and the winner was South
Glenayr, they earned ice cream! Andrew
Aarts and Jack Thibodeau lowered the
flag and another amazing day went by at
Kieve!

OD: Jack Marston
August 1, 2013

Dressed as a billionaire with a tropical
air, I, Jack Marston, introduced the theme
of the day at flag as stock-market day. I
had made my money investing in foreign
projects like the Panama Canal and the
coffee farm of my associate, Zacharia
Alejandro Atchinson de la Finca de la
Paz.

At breakfast, Ricky and Louisa
introduced their southern hot-sauce
corporation, Vern and Haywood
proclaimed themselves as wealthy oil
men drilling locally, Ed and Pierce
rivaled them with their rare earth
minerals company with promising
uranium prospects, Ryan Cholnoky and
JP told of their privatization of Lake
Damariscotta, and Phifer and Hib took the
roll of successful bankers and investors.
For Test Duty, the corporations battled
each other in a heated game of Apples
to Apples.

After their morning duties, the kids
came to Indian Circle and invested their
allotted $100 in the stocks of their choice,
held by the aforementioned corporations.
Sauce and minerals were favorites in the
first quarter. At lunch, the change of the
markets were announced. International
investment under Zach and my names
was up 100%, hot sauce struggled with
the poor economy for such rich sauce
and was down 50%, oil was up 75%,
large deposits of uranium were found
and minerals rose 200%, Goldwater was
up 50% for charging Kieve to use the
lake, and money in the bank went up
50% as well.

After lunch, kids had the opportunity
to reinvest their money, and by dinner the
stocks had changed again. International
investments hit some legal troubles and
fell 100%, dinner fueled the hot sauce to

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grow 100%, there was an oil spill that
had to be cleaned up, but government
subsidies had the industry still rising
50%, uranium turned out to be largely
unhealthy, but progress is progress and
they too rose 50%, the oil spill and
drought hit Goldwater hard and they fell
100%, and the bank had a steady 50%
increase.

The bank bought out the struggling
mineral corporation, while the bank was
owned all along by the Sauce company
- Ricky and Louisa. Oil bought out
Goldwater to make things easy, while
all along I was the owner of all the oil
in the Americas. Ricky and I argued over
who was the richer man, and we decided
that the only way to solve it was a huge
game of Capture the Flag - which would
be JK's first evening activity, so it was
played between the soccer field and
Walker Field.

At flag, I thanked the camp for one
of the best days of my life, for I truly
had some of the most fun I'd ever had.
Furthermore, I told the boys that money
isn't everything. I told them that if
they lived solely in the pursuit of the
accumulation of wealth, they might
forget to live at all. As we took a knee
before the song, I asked them to think of
something they truly want to live for, and
with the Kieve Song, the day came to a
close.

OD: Hib Schenck
August 2, 2013
Risk Day

The day started out slightly chilly
and damp from the overnight rain. All
that led to a perfect atmosphere as Hib
Schenck, acting as Colonel Richard
Sharpe of his Majesty's Royal Rifle
Brigades, addressed the assembled
campers and counselors about the dire
news from the night before. The forces of
the evil Napoleon Bonaparte, played by
Ricky Nix, had won a staggering victory
over British forces at the Kieve Sign. As
of flag Napoleon controlled half of camp,
including the territories of Harriet House,
the Kieve Sign, the Soccer Field, and
Innisfree. But hope remained, assured
Hib, as a Grand Alliance had been
formed to defeat Napoleon and save the

camp. Admiral Horatio Nelson, played
by Amaury Dujardin, joined forces with
Czar Nicholas of Russia, Zach Atchinson;
the Grand Sultan of the Ottoman Empire,
Jamie Pinkham; and Field Marshal Otto
Von Bismarck, Graham Abbey.

After breakfast, the Grand Alliance
all joined their forces for a match of
Rock, Paper, Scissors with Napoleon
in what became known as the Battle
of Pasquaney and defeated the would-
be French conqueror with a surprise
moose play. Napoleon was defeated and
banished to Camden Hills, but even as
the camp was saved, the members of
the Grand Alliance began to squabble
amongst each other for control over the
various territories of the camp. Test duty
was determined by a lively Rock, Paper,
Scissors bracket and the campers went
off to morning activities.

At lunch, the squabbling amongst the
former allies got worse and continued all
through dinner as the contenders threw
large foam dice to determine who won
control of different territories before Hib
interceded and informed the crowd that
the smaller powers deserved to compete
for territory as well, declaring a camp-
wide game of Kieve Risk.

The Evening Activity, Kieve Risk,
was a cabin-based competition over the
eight territories of Kieve: Pasquaney,
Innisfree, the Buck, the Kieve Sign, the
Blacktop, Harriet House, the Waterfront,
and the Soccer Field. In order to take
control of a territory, a cabin would have
to get the highest score at the challenge
in that territory. There was a live leader
board run by Hib at the blackboard at
Pasquaney. One counselor and two
campers from every cabin were allowed
to remain at the blackboard to report their
cabin's conquests and strategize with the
group running around camp.

South Glenayr and South Harrington
fought for the lead for most of the game,
while the other cabins were rotating in
and out of different territories, but with
ten minutes left. Bank I, who had been
shut out to that point, began an incredible
charge. First, they won Harriet House,
then they won the Kieve Sign, then they
won the Soccer Field, and despite getting
the Kieve Sign taken from them, they

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then won the Waterfront. They retained
three territories and took one each from
SG and SH. At flag, SG faced SH in a
dice toss to determine the winner of
Pasquaney after they tied in challenge,
and SG won, securing second place and
eliminating the possibility of SH tying
Bank I, which gave them the win.

Hib ended the day by speaking
about the name of the game of Risk. He
encouraged everybody to take risks and
make sure to take advantage of Kieve's
unique ability to force people out of their
comfort zone. Luckily the rain held off all
day until just after the flags were lowered
and the Kieve song was sung.

OD: Timmy Macrae
August 3, 2013
Shrek Day

The campers came to flag this morning
and witnessed all the fairytale creatures
being evicted from Duloc and sent into
Shrek's swamp, Pasquaney. During the
scene. Donkey, played by Henry Coote,
broke free from the guards and ran into
Shrek on top of the rock. Donkey and
Shrek quickly became friends and led all
the campers into Pasquaney. During the
morning test duty, Greg Ferland put on
a magnificent performance as Pinocchio
and Graham Abbey and Amaury Dujardin
sang a hilarious song as the Three Little
Pigs.

During announcements several
fairytale creatures made announcements
to help the day move along to the
storyline of Shrek 1. Lord Farquaad,
played by Jack Marston, put on a fashion
show to discover his true love with Jake
Lynch as the Magic Mirror presenting
all the brides. Once Farquaad settled on
Fiona, played by Mimi, the day took off
and the quest began.

Throughout the day skits were
performed and eventually the entire
Shrek 1 storyline was played out,
climaxing with a kiss between Shrek and
Ogre Fiona, played by Jamie Pinkham.

The day ended with a big game of
Paparazzi; the kids had to round up all
of the counselors dressed as fairytale
creatures and invite them to Shrek's
wedding. Other highlights included a
pain-dive by Vern Van Oot in a dragon

costume and hilarious raft skits detailing
Shrek and Donkey's adventures during
G-swim.

OD: Maggie Casey
August 4, 2013

The sun shined down this morning
as Theo Chavarot and Max d'Aumale
raised the flag. Table boys bustled and
pancakes whizzed through the air during
our Sunday morning pancake breakfast.
Sid Smith had a particularly outstanding
catch, snagging a pancake that was
thrown from halfway across Pasquaney.

At chapel we had a record number of
campers stand up to share thoughts with
their fellow cabinmates including Henry
Southall, Dillon Sutko, Ryan Cole, Mikey
Kantor, Patrick Elwood, Finn Pennings,
Bailey Williams, Brady Reynolds, and
Jonathon Elkins. JK Loyalty won the
prestigious title of sweetest singing cabin,
while Bank I took home the loudest
cabin award. Counselor Jamie Pinkham
spoke about conquering our fears and the
strength of our Kieve family.

After chapel, everyone rushed to their
cabins to finish sweeping and cleaning
before Sunday inspection. After the
barbeque, the winners of inspection
were announced and JK Loyalty, JK
Perseverance, South Bunkerhill, and
South Glenayr all won ice cream for their
cabins.

In the afternoon. Rope Swing and
Kickball were the first afternoon activities
to fill up. A thunderstorm rolled in right
in time for afternoon general swim, so we
moved into the Buck and had a riveting
egg drop contest instead, with Bank I,
South Harrington, and JK Respect's egg
holders all withstanding the grueling test
of the Buck Egg Launch.

For dinner, counselors grilled burgers
and campers played Four Square and
Frisbee games until we opened the Kieve
Carnival for evening activity. Campers
could dunk counselors in the dunk tank,
or pie them in the face at the pie stand.
Tennis balls flew at Bozo buckets, and
campers zipped down the hill at the slip
and slide. At evening flag, cabin mates
Theo Stone and Eric Mehrberg lowered
the flag to end another fantastic day.

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OD: Henry Clark
August 5, 2013

The day started out with a bang as
everyone got lectured on Kieve's lack of
effort in being technology free. Henry
Clark decided that because of this lack
of acting as "pure" as we could, he was
going to do something about it, so he
turned off all the technology and created
a police force in order to enforce the strict
rule of being completely technology free.
The flag was raised by two "pure" tech
free campers, Sebastian Andrews and
Ben Thorshiem.

At breakfast there were no lights on in
Pasquaney and instead of music blasting
from the speakers per usual, we were
treated with live "real" music from Nick
Favaloro behind the piano and Greg
Ferland on guitar. During announcements
CJ and Ricky were caught hacking
computers in the corner of Pasquaney
and as a result were arrested by the
police force and brought to prison which
was set up on the speakers corner of the
deck. After announcements duties were
read off and then Henry put on a friendly
game of musical chairs to find out who
had Test duty.

After duties at Indian Circle Nick
Merriam was caught using his cell phone
on the porch and was immediately
thrown into prison. Everyone went to
their morning activities which flew by
and then led to General swim. After
G swim we had a lunch of corn dogs
and pulled pork sandwiches. During
announcements at lunch Louisa and
Grhambo were caught by the police
trying to send a snap chat to one another,
they were immediately sent to prison.
After rest period everyone met up once
again for Indian Circle and then left to
the activities they signed up for.

Activities flew by and dinner rolled
around. During announcements at
dinner the technology freaks, Henry
Coote and Randy Lynch, emerged from
inside, glowing of headlamps all over
their bodies. The police did not like the
sight of this and immediately picked
them up and physically threw them into
prison. After announcements somehow
the prisoners found a way to escape.
As in any prisoner escape situation an

energy battle began, many balls of energy
were tossed back and forth, but the pure
Kievers were too strong in numbers and
won. As a result the prisoners ran off,
and since we would not stand for them
escaping and ruining the purity of our
camp, the whole camp came together for a
huge game of Escape to Freedom in order
to find the prisoners. The day ended as
it always does as Hudson Lazzara and
Hudson Neleman from South Bunker
Hill lowered the flag.

OD: Pierce Leonard
August 6, 2013

The day's theme was Ultimate Sports
Day and what an honor it was for this
to be my first OD day. The day began on
a beautiful morning and I knew it was
going to be awesome. I asked campers
from my South Glenayr cabin. Tucker
Fearey and Finn Pennings, to raise the
flag. We all went to breakfast. I was most
eager to give the morning blessing for
everyone to begin eating.

During announcements I forgot to ask
about counselor announcements, but
the show went on and everyone got to
do their announcements. For the first
competition of the day I rolled dice to
select four campers to play cornhole. The
winner picked counselors for Test duty. I
had Mimi and Julia come up as they were
the team captains for the baseball teams
in the evening.

Then everyone had duties and I began
talking with Tom about the tasks that
needed to be completed in order for the
big baseball game to go off without a hitch
in the evening. During Indian Circle I
picked six campers to play roofball. The
winner got to pick which two counselors
went on a lunch date and Maggie and
Sanchez were picked.

During first activity period I gathered
mascot costumes and devices to be taken
down to Walker Field. The day before
Tucker, Mimi, and I went out to the field
and diagrammed the baseball diamond
and set up the fence.

Then came G-Swim where my raft
skit was "the greatest moment in sports
history". Tommy and C.J. stole the
show by reenacting Sewanee's double
overtime victory against Berry in the S AA

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Championship this past season. We also
had a biggest splash competition which
ended with Ricky having to perform a
pain dive.

Lunch went by smoothly and after
I had Mimi and Julia come up and
announce their teammates. I then rolled
the dice for two campers to be the teams'
managers. Everyone was getting excited
for the game and I knew the pressure was
on to get everything ready for game time.
The team names were the Blue Tornadoes
and the Orange Crush.

After rest hour and Indian Circle, the
clock began and it was a race to get the
grills, food, speakers w/microphone, and
the other equipment all down to Walker
Field to set up. Luckily I got Pietro to
help along with J. P. and Jake. They were
a tremendous help in getting everything
set up for the kids to eat during the
baseball game. I just had to check to
make sure everything made it there and
get stuff that was missed.

Second G-Swim came too quickly and
1 was nervous that everything would not
be ready to begin right at 6 PM. The raft
skit was "new sport activity at Kieve". Ed
and C.J. won with underwater ping pong.
After G-Swim I went back to Walker
Field in my umpire outfit only to find
that everything was ready and the hot
dogs were on the grill.

After all the campers, players, and staff
arrived, we had Claire sing the national
anthem and we began playing. The
Blue Tornadoes batted first. The game
was lively and great competition. Many
players took it serious, which made
it better for the kids. After home runs
the kids would take their shirts off and
streak the field. It took several minutes to
clear the field for play again. In-between
innings there was competitions such as a
Mascot Race, base running competition,
and baseball throwing competition.
Ricky and John Goodman were fantastic
announcers and I owe them much credit.
The game of course ended in a Kieve Tie
and everyone made their way to flag. At
flag I had Joe Richter and Graycen lower
the flag. As the Kieve song was being sung
I felt a huge sense of accomplishment
and could not believe my first OD day
was over.

I could not have pulled it off if it weren't
for Tommy's guidance along with all the
other staff that stepped in and helped. It
was a team effort and the kids had a great
Ultimate Sports Day experience. After
all the hustle and bustle I was more than
happy to just have to clean-up.

OD: Nick Sanchez
August 7, 2013
Staff Shuffle Day

The boys awoke late from a sleep-in to
another sunny morning with something
amiss about the counselors. Staff had
switched personalities, and clothes,
with other counselors. Matteo Perper
and Will Sears raised the flag after words
from Nick Sanchez (who was the new
Nick Merriam) and the boys followed
the new Pietro (Emily Gabriel) down to
Pasquaney.

The comedy from the announcements
of people playing other people was off the
charts. The new John Goodman (Ricky
Nix) and the new Ricky (Goodman) made
announcements for each other's different
activities. The new impersonators had an
egg toss for Test duty with Will Fox (Julia
Shepley), Evan Kantor (Zach Atchinson),
Tucker (Alexa), and Pinkham (Greg
Ferland).

Camp was small today with only 9
cabins on campus. After a cool sunny
morning of activities, plenty of kickball
and adventure, we reconvened for lunch.
Thereafter, the improv of the consular
continued with everyone being chanted
to do other people's call outs. Will Phifer
(Emily Carney) gave us a fact of the day
while Mike Orr (Will Phifer) did some
parkour. Pierce (Jake Rockefeller) broke
it down for us and Nat Shenton (Claire
Heinichen) gave us the banana dance.

After rest hour there were plenty of
activities to be had. There was a lot of
swimming and sailing on a hot windy
day. Baseball was huge down at Harriet
house and today was the first time Arcos,
a card game created by Goodman (the
real Goodman), was opened.

The night's Evening Activity was
Ultimate Sports Night. The boys had
an open hill to go do Gaga Ball, Soccer,
Country Club, 4 Square, Dodge ball,
Knockout, and even some more Arcos.

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At the end of the night, the kids went
to bed with the message given to them
by the real Sanchez this time who said
that what matters most about Kieve is
what it means to you, not anyone else.
Flag was lowered by Henry Holliday and
Nick Giandrea and the boys went back
to their cabins to another sleep-in for the
next day.

OD: John Goodman
August 8, 2013

On the morning of the eighth, the
campers arrived at flag to be greeted by
the figure of Benjamin Nicholas Cage
Gates Goodman, a disgraced treasure
hunter whose family had been searching
for a legendary stockpile of ancient
wealth for generations. Finally he had
traced the treasure to Camp Kieve with
the help of a single clue: "The secret lies
with Chrisman" as well as his sarcastic
sidekick Greg Doug Ferland and the
funding of Evan Sean Bean Kantor for
the expedition. At breakfast, Goodman
and his associates discovered the next
clue hidden atop the famous Pasquaney
moose, nicknamed Will Chrisman.
There, a gold medallion with mysterious
runes on it was wrapped in a piece of
paper with another riddle: "Not every
yoke is golden, just as not every treasure
is shown; my legacy beholden 'neath
where every flag is flown." Just then
however, Kantor and his henchman
Pietro betrayed Goodman and Ferland.
Our two heroes escaped by the nape of
their necks by throwing a match at some
loose gunpowder so they could flee in
the ensuing mayhem.

By Indian Circle, Goodman and the
boys of South Cunningham, who had
been assigned to tidy Innisfree during
morning duties, had deciphered the
riddle, and found behind the ox yoke
above Innisfree fireplace a letter. It was
from James Innisfree to his son, and
among other things it told us that a crucial
clue would be a specific OD Report from
1961. Goodman's father. Will Phifer, had
a copy of the old Kieve Annual with
the report in it, and begrudgingly gave
it up before examining the letter and
discovering two words written on it in
invisible ink: "KIEVE SIGN".

After a fun morning activity period,
we had some free time (morning G-Swim
having been foregone for a late sleep)
before lunch, where Goodman realized
the only way he'd be able to examine the
famous Kieve Sign for clues would be to
"borrow" it, and Kantor simultaneously
realized that he could not decode the
clues without Goodman's help. They
decided to team up after announcements
to heist the sign, and quickly put their
plan into motion. Goodman and Pietro
approached the sign (moved to Pasquaney
for a special display) in disguise, carrying
a trashbag in a wheelbarrow. Ferland
disabled the security system and Kantor
burst out of the trashbag to help carry
the sign with great haste into the waiting
Spruce Goose, Kieve 's favourite green
seatless van. The four daring thieves
made their escape, and the campers
headed to rest hour.

After afternoon activities and an
excellent G-Swim at which Goodman
escaped from FBI custody and the raft
skit demanded that the campers illustrate
a great moment in Kieve history, it was
time for dinner. We had a delicious
dinner of chicken grilled by our own
Jamie Pinkham, Luke Ross, and Emily
Carney, and then the grand finale of the
day's adventure took place.

When the treacherous Kantor took
Kieve Sign curator Janie Warnock and
Greg hostage, Goodman was forced
to help him decode the final clue,
which revealed that the treasure was
hidden beneath "Kieve's predecessor"
which Greg correctly deduced was a
reference to Pasquaney, named after the
camp which Don Kennedy attended.
Goodman, Kantor, Greg, Janie, and Pietro
all headed into the catacombs beneath
the Pasquaney porch to find the lost
treasure. The decades-old carpentry
left failing planks, causing Pietro to fall
to his death in the abyss, and soon the
quadrio reached a dead end. Here, our
heroes tricked Kantor into heading back
up to the Kieve Sign for another clue,
where he was arrested by the waiting FBI
agents. Meanwhile, Goodman, Janie, and
Greg found the real treasure, and decided
to give it to whatever cabin could win a
big game of Photo Scavenger Hunt.

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The game was great fun, with cabins
getting photos of various items from a
hst, ranging from a ten-person human
pyramid to a cabin photo with the
stolen Kieve Sign, which was hidden
somewhere in camp. South Cunningham
emerged the winner, with North Harris
and North Cunningham close contenders,
and before lowering the flag Goodman
offered some words of wisdom to the
camp: remember your history, but don't
be bound by it, and don't forget that in
the end, the treasure that really matters
is in Ecuador, where the Inca general
Ruminahui hid it in 1533.

OD: Will Phifer
August 9, 2013

This morning, the last full day that
Junior Kieve would be at the end of West
Neck Road, the campers arrived at flag
to listen to John Goodman's "I believe
in America" speech, which opens the
Godfather film series. Following the
raising of the flag, the campers went down
to Pasquaney for a delicious breakfast of
corned beef hash and biscuits. During
announcements, many of the Mafioso
characters introduced themselves. The
Pepperoni family made it clear to the
Pasqualio family (of which I was the
Don, as Vito Corleone) that they needed
to invest in their bacon business, or else
face severe consequences. The Pasqualio
family answered that they wanted no
part in the dirty bacon business. Near the
end of announcements, Henry Clark, a
Pepperoni, was gunned down as he told
camp that he was leaving on a trip. The
war in between the families had begun.

At Indian Circle, which was inside
Pasquaney because it would rain all day,
my bodyguard was shot by a Pepperoni
with a towel around his hand to muffle
the noise. After this shocking event,
the campers were sent to their morning
activities. All of Junior Kieve was gone for
most of the day on their own expedition.
Because camp had slept in, there was no
general swim after morning activities.
Instead, the boys were allowed a few
minutes of free time before lunch. At
lunch, which was chicken dippers, Tony
Pepperoni (Vern Van Oot) and I met to
discuss the feud in between our families.

Just as we were beginning to reach
an agreement, my son, Michael (Jack
Marston), took a gun out of a trashcan
and shot Pietro Pepperoni. The campers
were told to go to rest hour as the carnage
continued.

After an extended rest hour, before
the boys left for their activities, I had a
conversation with my son. Sonny (Evan
Kantor), about how we would continue
to battle the Pepperoni family. Soon after
we began to talk, Tony Pepperoni himself
barged in and shot Sonny with a shotgun
(and throwing a stick of pepperoni on his
chest). I asked for a truce with Tony, and
we both decided to marry my other son,
Michael, to his daughter, Kay (Louisa
Lawton), at Pasqualio's Trattoria that
night. Camp's size was still small because
of JK's absence. When activity period was
over, the boys gathered at the climbing
wall for an all-cabin lap sit teambuilding
activity. After this, the boys had a little
free time to get dressed for the wedding
at Pasqualio's.

At 5:45, the boys ascended the hill
in costume and proceeded into the
typical Italian trattoria. We ate chicken
wings, mozzarella sticks, garlic bread,
Caesar salad, and spaghetti pasta before
the wedding. Near the end of the meal,
the waiters (counselors) brought out
popsicles for the restaurant patrons to
enjoy. Soon after this, there was a brief
dance party, and then Junior Kieve
unfortunately had to leave to go to their
campfire ceremony in Innisfree.

Finally, the wedding began, with
Tony Pepperoni bringing his daughter
Kay down the aisle to give her away to
Michael Corleone. With Jamie Pinkham
performing the ceremony, the happy
couple was soon together "'til death do us
part. "At that moment, an indoor evening
activity game of "Best of the Best" began,
where each cabin had to come up with a
skit based on the different topics given to
them. With Pietro Barbieri and Will Fox
DJ-ing, the SAX MAN song was born, as
it was played in between each skit. At
flag, the boys of Junior Kieve rejoined
us for their last night at this wonderful
camp. Overall, it was a very rewarding
day to be Officer of the Day.

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OD: Zach Atchinson
August 10, 2013

The chimes. The bell. The stream of
campers rushing out of cabins to raise the
flag at the top of the hill. Momo Durach
and Lucas Galarza hoisted the flags, and
with no clouds in the sky and a beautiful
sunny day waiting for us, the excitement
at camp was palpable as we began our
day. After ten days that had raced by, the
Junior Kieve program had finally come to
an end. Parents were arriving by the end
of breakfast ready to tour the camp and
see what this magical place is all about,
and by the time we had finished morning
duties, the camp was getting packed full
of families coming to collect their boys.
As the full session campers ran around
their morning activities, we saw the JK
cabins doing final cabin meetings and
trading goodbyes. After a nice long G-
swim we worked our way through a
delicious lunch, and under a brilliant
blue sky we trekked back to our cabins
for rest period.

The JK guys ran around a handful of
activities with their families during the
afternoon while the rest of camp signed
up as usual and headed to their chosen
pursuits. Goodman's "Milk Club" was
popular, as was the canoe trip across
the lake to Southover. After second G-
swim we climbed from the waterfront to
Pasquaney to find sizzling steaks being
grilled outside! A delicious steak dinner
provided a lovely welcome back for the
four cabins that returned, Allagash I and
II, Bank II, and South Harrington, and
after we finished scarfing down the prime
cuts of meat everyone headed down to
Walker Field for a camp-wide game of
dodgeball! With balls flying back and
forth across the field, time seemed to fly
as we eventually finished up and headed
back up the hill to flag. Dan Schechter
and Tim White helped lower the flags,
and after a lovely day at camp everyone
was ready for a restful night of sleep.

OD: Mimi Middlebrooks
August 11, 2013

Today Kieve celebrated the last
Sunday at camp in the most original
fashion. Even though the Kieve flag was
accidentally raised upside down, we still

embraced the day, hoping to make it the
most stellar final Sunday of the session.
Breakfast began with an entertaining
game of "Whose Line Is It Anyways?" as
John Goodman expressed that if he were
a snail, he would hang glide on Doritos.
Camp was then graced by more of
Goodman's wise words at chapel, where
he shared the beauty of having control
of your identity and the importance of
courage, perseverance and loyalty.

The day continued on just like any
other Sunday at camp, and the sun was
shining with no clouds to get in its way.
Our finest chefs prepared a classic meal
of barbeque chicken, corn on the cob and
watermelon for lunch while each cabin
prepared for weekly inspection. With
energy levels high, afternoon activities
concluded with another delicious meal,
consisting of hamburgers and hotdogs.

The day ended with an ultimate game
of ultimate Frisbee. Each cabin dressed
in their assigned attire of either light
or dark clothing and played Graham
Abbey's version of ultimate with as
many Frisbees as possible. As the flag
was lowered, we gathered on one knee,
reflecting on how special our last Sunday
in camp had been and thinking of the
last week of camp that lies ahead of us.
This final Sunday of the session mainly
proved that Kieve is not the type of place
that can be measured or explained, but
can only be experienced.

OD: Mike Orr
August 12, 2013

You're telling me its 8:25? I'm late for
flag! The day began in 2013 and ended
in 1985. John "Doc" Goodman sent me
back in time to find his primer pouch
when I accidently disrupted the future
friendship between Tommy and Walter.
My new mission for the day was to repair
what I had broken. It was an older cabin
day at camp as the bottom of the hill
went to the beach.

At breakfast we listened to the 80s
greatest hits and by morning activities
everyone was donning their best and
brightest clothing to go along with the
theme for the day. The topic for raft
skits was 80s movies with some great
interpretations of Predator, Ghostbusters,

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and Caddyshack, with Sam Czaja
channeling his inner Bill Murray. The
lunch was very chill with only a few
cabins in camp for the great tacos. At
dinner, the Tommy/Walter feud was
resolved after learning that they both
enjoyed inspecting cabins and listening
to Widespread Panic. Ultimate OTB was
the Evening Activity and I can easily say
that it was my favorite of the summer. A
canoe trailer backup contest between The
One, T.J., Reid, and Walter started things
off with Walter easily coming in with the
fastest time. Grahambo edged out Randy
Lynch in Frolf while Pietro won a canoe
portage race. The final competition was
a huge council game of Knockout. The
final two standing were Ed and myself.
Unfortunately, Ed knocked me out after a
tense back and forth. What a great way to
wrap up another amazing day at the end
of the West Neck Road.

OD: Jake Rockefeller
August 13, 2013

The first dice roll was to see who would
give some wise words at morning flag.
Emily Carney was picked and she gave
a beautiful speech to kick off the day.
Next, I was rolled and chosen to vvrrite
this OD report. At breakfast the dice rolls
began. Pietro got rolled to be a camper
for the day in the North Cunningham
cabin. Next, Claire got rolled to fold Will
Stevens' laundry before he departed.
Emily Gabriel got rolled to jump rope
during all the announcements while
Andy Lynch and I twirled the rope. To
make sure everyone stayed hydrated all
day C.J. got rolled to be Edward Nalgene
hands and had to duct tape two Nalgenes
to his hands all day. Mimi got rolled to
help the kitchen staff clean up.

After breakfast the kids headed out to
their activities. After activities we had a
great lunch where some more dice got
rolled. Greg Ferland got chosen to carry
an egg around with him all day without
breaking it. Another announcement that
usually gets chanted is for someone to
break it down on stage. Nick Sanchez got
rolled so he had to go on stage and show
everyone his dance moves. To make sure
someone was protected from the sun
all day, Greg Ferland wanted someone

to wear longs and longs all day and
unfortunately his name was then rolled.
There is always a hero and a villain
picked for the day and this session the
hero was Nick Merriam and the villain
was Trey Zenker. Whenever they saw the
hero, people would cheer and when they
saw the villain, they would boo at him.

After lunch the kids had rest period
for an hour. After rest period the kids
went to the afternoon activities that
they signed up for. Alexa got rolled to
announce her presence every time she
would walk into a room or through a
door. Next Claire got picked to only have
one arm for the day because apparently
a shark bit it off. C.J. and Mac got rolled
to always have noodles in their hand
and, whenever they saw each other,
they had to have a noodle fight. Cam
got rolled to wear a Toucan costume all
day. One of the final and best dice rolls
of the day was Ed who had to answer all
the camper questions that were always
consistently asked every day. At dinner
the final dice calls were made before
Henry Coote, who was chosen to pick
the Evening Activity, announced the
activity that he made up called "Shhh".
It was a combination between Sardines
and Escape to Freedom. All in all it was
a wonderful Dice Day.

OD: Nat Shenton & PietroBarbieri
August 14, 2013

Rivalry Day started already at flag
with the ODs Nat and Pietro arguing
about how they were going to run flag.
They could not decide on the campers to
raise the flag or on the person to follow.
Finally they came to agreement with two
campers from each cabin, Sal and Keelan
from AUagash III and Wyeth and Ethan
from North Harris. Breakfast consisted
of the revealing of the theme for the
day, Anchorman, which pitted Nat's
American Channel 4 news team of Ricky,
Mike Orr, and Pinkham versus Pietro 's
Italian Channel 8 news team of Amaury,
Goodman, and Emily Gabriel. During
announcements, the cabins started to
call out their rival cabins for the morning
activities. This ended in an arm wrestling
Test duty.

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At Indian Circle, Pinkham and Amaury
had a fight over American and European
football before the activities were read.
The kids soon went off to play each
other in different sports throughout
the morning. Some of the sports were
football, country club, dodgeball, and
football. During general swim Goodman
and Mike Orr got into an argument over
the paddleboards and snorkel.

The rivalries got more intense at
lunch, with Fox against the Epic sax man
and Blondes versus Brunettes. After the
afternoon activities, the rivalries could
not contain themselves and had to be
settled by an evening activity of "WWE"
night. This consisted of the Blondes
versus Brunettes and Tyler Hill fighting
an invisible bear. It culminated in a fight
between the two news teams and the
Swany News team. Nat and Pietro finally
settled their differences right before
flag. Buddy and Forrest lowered the flag
before heading to the cabin to rest up for
Qual Thursday.

OD: Evan Kantor
August 15, 2013
Qualification Thursday

What a glorious tradition Qualification
Thursday is here at Kieve. On the last
Thursday of the session, every activity is
opened up and the campers are allowed
free roam of camp in order to achieve any
qualifications they would like. We woke
up on this Qual Thursday to a cloudless
sky, with temperatures in the mid 70s.
We couldn't have asked for a nicer day.
We began our action packed day with the
routine flag raising ceremony, which was
performed by Mikey Kantor and Tyler
Rodgers. After flag, we headed down to
a delicious waffle breakfast inside of a
packed Pasquaney, since all of the cabins
were in camp except Maine Trails.

During announcements, we learned
of multiple fun tournaments that
would take place during the day. For
woodshop, there would be an Indy 500
inches wooden car race. There would
be a Kubb tournament, a Stanley Cup
hockey tournament, and, of course,
the Frolf Masters. Kids got a chance to
sign up for those tournaments during
breakfast, and after Indian Circle camp

was in full swing. Kids were running
around from activity to activity, raking
in quals in riflery, archery, swimming,
and many others. Music was blasting
from Pasquaney porch as an exciting
atmosphere filled camp with joy.

After two hours of open hill the boys
met at the waterfront for G-Swim. In
order to come in from their rafts, the
boys prepared skits reenacting their
favorite moments from the session. We
got some really great skits going, and they
brought back fond memories of camp
and hilarious moments we may have
forgotten. During a buddy-up session,
Maine Trails II surprised us by kayaking
into the lake after completing their 22-
day trip. It was great to see them.

After G-Swim we had a huge lunch,
consisting of chicken nuggets and mac
and cheese to name a few tasty treats. Rest
hour lasted until 2:45, and afterwards
the same open hill took place. Only in
the afternoon, even more activities were
available and the final rounds of the
tournaments took place. The boys got to
skip G-Swim in the afternoon and had
free time to hang with their cabins, play
Four Square or Frisbee, and basically
just enjoy the last few moments at camp.
We all had that bittersweet feeling in the
back of our minds that today is so much
fun, but in a couple days we would all be
heading home.

Nonetheless, camp continued in great
spirits. Dinner was phenomenal. Our very
own Cam Miller cooked up his famous
Cam-burgers, stuffed with crackers,
onions, and garlic. Mouth- Watering.
During announcements we were once
again surprised by the entrance of Maine
Trails I, who came in with a roar over
the national anthem and "USA" chants.
We learned that Dylan Gaffney from
Long Voyage I won the Indy 500 inches.
Ellis Cooper and Sam Gardner won the
Kubb tournament, while the Warriors
won the Stanley Cup. Last but definitely
not least, Joseph Riley won the Masters.
They deserve to be celebrated for their
achievements.

After dinner the younger cabins,
middle cabins, and older cabins all met
up at separate campfires to discuss their
favorite moments from their wilderness

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trips. Being in a middle cabin myself, I
learned all about the Baxter State Park
trips, as well as the Bank trips. The
campfires are a great time to get a closer
look into other cabins' trips, and for the
younger guys to get excited about doing
the older trips next summer. After the
campfires we openly welcomed Wavus
over for wonderful fireworks. Both
camps gathered around the waterfront
and enjoyed a brilliant lightshow in the
sky to cap off a wonderful day and a great
session. Afterwards both camps gathered
around the flag while Henry Kennedy
spoke of being grateful to have spent the
summer at such a wonderful place. Both
camps sang their songs after Maine Trails
from Kieve and Wavus lowered the flag,
and we went to bed feeling nostalgic,
happy, and warm. Qual Thursday 2013
was surely a success, and it was truly
another wonderful day at Kieve.

OD: Julia Shepley
August 16, 2013

Camp Kieve woke up to a beautiful
morning. The sun was shining and
there wasn't a cloud in the sky. The
kids were eager to get to flag to find out
what the theme of the day was. For Aqua
Attack we picked the theme The Great

Gatsby. As kids trickled into Pasquaney
their faces, lit up in awe at the sight
of the decorations inside. Streamers
and lights hung from the ceiling, a
counselor was playing the grand piano,
balloons were scattered on the floor,
and each table was covered with white
tablecloths and confetti. The kids loved
the aqua attack movie that had them
laughing while explaining the premise
of the day. After the kids finished their
breakfast, they joined counselors who
were swing dancing around Pasquaney.
We had announcements that included
Gatsby and Tom Buchanan introducing
themselves. After breakfast campers
had the opportunity to have "open hill."
This was their last chance to try and
get any last minute qualifications or
accomplishments. The morning was very
productive and exciting for the kids, they
really gave it their all. We had a delicious
lunch followed by more Great Gatsby
skits.

After lunch each cabin went back
and packed up all their belongings and
cleaned up for inspection. When all the
cleaning was done, we were awarded with
a giant game of Aqua attack!! Essentially,
this is a giant game of capture the flag that
involves canoes as well. This game is one

113

of the highlights of the summer and the to a close. We do this to honor Maine

kids had a blast. Maine Trails organized Trails and all of their accomplishments,

a giant cookout for the camp down on The bonfire is a place where people

Harriet House field. We enjoyed each can express their experiences and love

other's company while eating good food for Kieve. It ended with some beautiful

and playing fun yard games like Frisbee. music performed by different counselors.

Following the cookout we all retreated We concluded this perfect day up at flag

down to Kistler where we have our end-of- in silence, reflecting on what a perfect

the-session bonfire. This is a very special session this has been,
and sacred way to bring our summer

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First Session Trip Reports

Junior Kieve Courage
Bremen Landing & Hog Island
Trey Zenker, HBC
Julys

The great Junior Kieve Courage
cabin departed Camp Kieve following
morning Indian Circle on Monday the
8th to explore Bremen, Hog Island, and
more! The first stop of our trip was Fort
William Henry where campers and
counselors alike were able to explore the
remains of a fort dating back to the late
1600s. After visiting the fort, JK Courage
made its way towards Kieve's very own
Bremen Landing where we would camp
for the night. At this time, we had a
quick PB&J lunch and prepared for an
afternoon voyage about the high seas on
the Snowgoose III with Captain Bill. On
the Snowgoose, the cabin pulled up a
number of lobster traps and all were able
to touch genuine Maine lobsters. Anders
Kirkland took particular interest in the
lobsters, handling them with confidence
and care. Afterwards the cabin seized
the opportunity to jump into the ocean
from the boat's roof. Hugh Holmes
and Cooper Pickering were most eager
here and jumped a combined 35 times!
Additionally, though hesitant at first,
Finn Jacobs eventually took the plunge
and had a great time doing it alongside
counselors Louisa Lawton and Garrett
Jensen.

After an eventful voyage on the
Snowgoose III, JK Courage returned
to Bremen where the cabin was split
into three groups and charged with the
task of putting on a skit depicting what
counselors do with their free time to
determine who would eat first. The
winning team, led by Dawson Kirkland
and Burk McGill, put on an uproarious
skit consisting of council bowling
matches, pizza feasts, and midnight
dance parties! However, cheesesteaks
and bacon were well-deserved and
enjoyed by all that night after a long
day of intrigue and adventure. Later that
evening, Henry Higgs and Artus Mosquet
collected a number of fascinating crabs
and snails to be housed in their creative

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and elaborate rock forts built down by the
ocean. Before bed, the entire cabin joined
together to play a high spirited game of
"Prankster" and, despite the cabin's best
sleuthing efforts, Walker McGinley was
successful in fooling all of his peers and
eventually won the game!
July 9

The next morning, the boy legends of JK
Courage rose early to the smell of sausage,
egg, and cheese breakfast sandwiches
expertly prepared by counselors Trey
Zenker and Logan Jackonis. The first
sandwich was presented to Charlie
Fenwick for his exceptional kindness
and helpfulness towards others in
the cabin throughout the trip. Upon

concluding breakfast, we zipped over to
Hog Island to meet "Hog Island" Ryan
and "Autobahn" Aaron for nature walks
and general education about the Maine
coast ecosystem. Reed Hyde was the first
to pull the lobster out of the educational
touch tank, bravely leading the way for
the other boys. Later that afternoon, Ryan
and Aaron proceeded to show JK Courage
around the island, explaining what plants
and animals were edible along the way.
Simon DiMatteo was particularly keen
on eating the salty "nature's pretzels" as
well as the wild "nature's pop rocks!"

The mighty, mighty JK Courage left
Hog Island at around 12:30 p.m. for
a delicious and well-received grilled
cheese and tomato soup lunch at Kieve's
Bremen landing before departing for the
historic Pemaquid Point Lighthouse.
Though the lighthouse was impressive in
its own right, it was nothing compared
to the sight of Thomas Koester's ear-to-
ear smile upon learning that we would
receive ice cream from the world famous
Round Top Ice Cream shop on our ride
home to camp. At approximately 5 p.m.,
17 ice creams later, JK Courage returned
to Camp Kieve with the radio blaring
and with a greater understanding of the
outdoors.

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Junior Kieve Kindness
Bremen Landing & Hog Island
T.J. Feagan, HBC

The day had finally arrived and JK
Kindness was ready to take on the
adventure that was in store. JKK would
be heading out to Hog Island for their
wilderness excursion and with gear
packed and vans loaded, they waved
goodbye to Kieve.

As the van rolled along, the boys
enjoyed the Maine scenery and jammed
out to the radio all the way to Fort
William Henry. The fort proved to be
an incredible stop with great views and
some fantastic historical artifacts. The
boys climbed to the top of the tower and
took in their surroundings as they looked
out over the bay. The fort proved to be
exciting, but our final destination still
lay before us.

Once back in the vans JK Kindness set
a course for Bremen and Kieve Landing.
Upon arrival we unloaded our gear
onto the Snowgoose III and enjoyed a
sandwich lunch on shore. After lunch
the cabin headed down to the Snowgoose
and boated over to Hog Island. Once
on the island we were greeted by Hog
Island Ryan and Audubon Aaron. While
Douglas Gillespie and others helped to
set up the tents, other members of the
cabin, including Connor Smith, finished
unloading the Snowgoose and moving
group gear up to the site. With the
campsite established, JK Kindness was
ready for the next portion of the trip.

We met with Aaron to begin our hike
around the island to see what Hog could
show us. We first stopped to explore
some tide pools. Rory Toland and others
ventured out onto the rocks and were
able to wrangle up some crabs and sea
life from the beach. On the stretch of
trail back to the campsite we played a
few rounds of camouflage where Clarke
Keough dominated the competition by
disappearing among the woods.

Dinner that night was a feast of bacon
cheeseburgers. The dinner skit theme to
win the first servings was a scene from
the campers' favorite movie. Edward
Nagler, Alistair Nalle, Nico Palazzi, and
J.Z. Zucker won with their reenactment
of Skyfall. As we finished the burgers, we

117

started a fire on the beach and made our
way down for some S'Mores. While some
of the boys enjoyed the fire, others were
headed down to the dock and the nature
lab to explore the nocturnal sea life. Once
the fire was out and the boys were done
in the nature lab, we all headed down to
the dock to witness the bioluminescence
in the water. We all headed to bed after
that, ready for some sleep to recharge for
the next day of our trip.

We woke up around seven the next
morning and began tearing down tents and
preparing breakfast sandwiches. Once
our gear was packed up, we boarded the
Snowgoose for the morning's adventure
through the bay. While onboard we
saw seals on the islands around us and
traveled from one lobster pot to the next
pulling up the crustaceans. Jack Colgate
was first up to pull the pots and was
leading the team with each heave of the
buoy line.

After we had checked all the pots, we
boated over towards Hog and dropped
anchor for some swimming. We all took
turns climbing up to the top of the boat
and jumping into the icy water. Gabe
Feurtado and Will Uffelman led the
charge and combined for over 70 jumps.
After the swimming we all dried off and
headed back to Hog Island for some lunch
before returning to Kieve landing.

From the landing we made two pit-
stops on our journey back to Kieve. First,
we stopped at Round Top for some well-
deserved ice cream and enjoyed our treats
while talking about the previous day's
events. Next, we swung by the Mills for
some great bridge jumping where Luke
Galiardo lapped everyone in jumps from
the elevated railing. After cooling off at
the Mills, we piled into the vans again
and set a course for home. It had been
a great trip, one that we would not soon
forget.

Junior Kieve Loyalty
Bremen Landing & Hog Island
Dex Jenks, HBC

"There once was a man from Hogtucket,
they called him Hog Island Ryan"

- Local Lore

"How can I only ask 7 questions?"

- Tim's Second Question

"Does Tim even own a shirt"

- The Whole Cabin
Tuesday, July 9th, 2013

After a vigorous night of packing and
tomfoolery, the boys of JK Loyalty were
ready for their voyage to the infamous
Hogtucket, also known as Hog Island.
With our anxieties behind us and
ambitions to the wind, we loaded up
the vans along with JK Perseverance and
made our way down West Neck Road.
What the boys didn't know is that we first
had a planned stop at the Fort William
Henry museum in Pemaquid Point,
just south of Kieve Landing in Bremen.
While at the museum the boys played a
short-lived game of Assassin and they
each got their hands on a snack-sized
bag of Cheez-Its while watching a short
film about the history of Pemaquid Point.
With the pit-stop said and done, the boys
of JK Loyalty and JK Perseverance loaded
back up into the Kieve vans and headed
north to Kieve Landing to meet up with
Hog Island Ryan and Audubon Aaron to
start their overnight trek.

Once at Kieve Landing with the bags
unloaded and on the Snowgoose III, the
boys got ready for the Titanic trip of
their life. While the Snowgoose did not
collide with an iceberg, the boys of JK
Loyalty did jump off of the Snowgoose
a lot. Grant, the official counter and
record bookkeeper of the cabin, claims
we jumped off of the Snowgoose at least
119 times, making it a record-setting day
for JK Loyalty. Even though the brisk
waters of Muscongus Bay were too cold
for some, it didn't stop Michael, Cedar,
Andrew, and Zander from jumping off
"at least 20 times" each. Tim, Pasha,
Andrew, Zander, Jack, and Thomas even
made history by completing the first ever
triple-brother jump.

Though the jumping wasn't for
everyone, all the boys, especially Luke
D and Luke T, were entertained and

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interested by the Kieve lobster traps
that they were able to pull up with
their thunderous call and response of
"HEAVE" followed by "HO" like sailors
of the past. After an afternoon of non-
stop fun, the always-energetic boys of JK
Loyalty weren't tired yet so we decided
to head over to Hog Island to meet up
with JK Perseverance.

Once at Hog Island, the boys played
an intense match of World Cup Soccer
against the other cabin and checked out
the Hog Island lab while the counselors
prepped dinner. However, the soccer
match was interrupted by a visit from
Hog Island's own porky-bear, otherwise
known as a really big porky-pine which
was many campers' favorite part of the
night. On the menu for dinner that night
was steak and provolone cheese wraps
with grilled peppers and onions along
with "four strips is not enough bacon"
as said by Ahlwynn. After dinner was
served and the boys were full, the only
logical choice was to make S 'Mores
followed by a very short-lived attempt
at a two-cabin game of Mafia. With
their stomachs finally full and tents set
up, the boys from both JK Loyalty and
Perseverance got ready for bed but not
without a reading of the Lorax by Dr.
Seuss from myself, Vern.
Wednesday, July 10th, 2013

The boys decided it would be a good
idea to wake up with the sun, a decision
their counselors weren't too happy with.
After trying to go back to sleep, the boys
dissembled their tents and got ready for a
hearty breakfast of bacon, egg, and cheese
breakfast sandwiches. After breakfast
was all cleaned up, the boys went on a
hike with Hog Island Ryan and Aaron to
check out the island and build some forts
along the way, Frazier's favorite part of
the trip. While on the hike the boys had
the challenge of picking up as much
trash as they could, the origin of Tim's
new nickname of Captain Planet. The
hike ended with five intense rounds of
Camouflage and then after a hearty lunch
the boys of JK Loyalty were ready to sea-
kayak back over to the Kieve landing
to head back up West Neck Road, not
without a stop at the famous Round-Top
Ice Cream along the way though.

-Vern Van Oot

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Junior Kieve Perseverance
Bremen Landing & Hog Island
Louis Cusano, HBC
July 9

The brave men of JK Perseverance
embarked on our trip to Hog Island on
Tuesday, July 9. All the boys piled into a
white van and we made our way to Fort
William Henry on Pemaquid Beach. We
learned about the tradition of cod fishing
at the Fort and played our first game of
Assassin. Jasper was our first assassin
and did a great job staying stealthy, but
didn't quite manage to assassinate the
whole group before his identity was
discovered.

After stopping at Fort William Henry,
we made our way to the Bremen putout. . .
we made it there at around 12:30 after I
made a couple wrong turns. Upon arriving
at the Bremen putout, we started making
sandwiches for lunch and preparing
ourselves for a big day on Hog Island
with Ryan. After eating our sandwiches,
we hopped on the Snowgoose III with
all our gear and headed over. Because
of the impending rain, we immediately
set up our tents when we arrived on the
island. J.T. did a great job at helping me
demonstrate the proper way to set up a
tent... Thanks J.T.

After setting up tents. Hog Island Ryan
gave us a full tour of the campground and
warned us to be quiet around the osprey
nest because a live video streams online
and people viewing around the world
would be able to hear our voices. Will
Koester was excited about the prospect
of his voice being on TV". Later on in
the afternoon, Ryan took us on a nature
hike around the island. Stephen made
a hilarious mustache out of "Old Man's
Beard" moss, Walker built an impressive
stick fort in the woods, and Chase ate
a whole bunch of nature's pop rocks...
AKA tiny jumping shrimp.

By the time we arrived back at camp, it
was time to cook dinner. Ryan Cholnoky
and Vernon Van Oot cooked up massive
bacon cheeseburgers for all of us while
James and others played in a competitive
game of Island Soccer. Will Vincent
speedily ate 2 and, while they both tasted
great, he said his stomach regretted
it later. But, even after the massive

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cheeseburgers, all the boys found room
for S 'Mores. After Billy ate his fair share
of S'Mores he proceeded to run around
the island garden for a solid 30 minutes
screaming, "Chocolate! Chocolate!
Chocolate!" It was a good thing we still
had a couple hours until bedtime.

After dinner, Hog Island Ryan boated
Emily and Mimi, our girl counselors,
back to Bremen and the rest of us boys
played a giant game of Mafia. When
Ryan returned, he showed us all some
really neat nature tricks. By biting down
on lifesavers in the pitch black dark, we
were all able to see sparks in each other's
mouths. We were also able to see algae
light up in the ocean water as we splashed
it around with our hands. Overall, it was
a very interesting night. We all called it a
night at around 10:30 p.m. as we climbed
into our tents and let Vernon calm us to
sleep with a reading of the Lorax.
July 10

The next morning, we woke up and
prepared ourselves for a ride on Kieve's
lobster boat, the Snowgoose III. We
wolfed down our breakfast of sausage,
egg, and cheese muffins and threw on
life jackets. The weather was foggy, but
we all managed to have a great time on
the Snowgoose. We were lucky enough
to see a bunch of seals as well as a fight
between a Bald Eagle and an osprey
through the binoculars on the boat. Hunter
really took a liking to Captain Bill's dog,
Blizzard. After a couple snacks on the
boat, Teddy and Connor led the way in
jumping off the top of the Snowgoose
into the icy water. We finished the trip
with a nice lunch of cold cuts back on
Hog Island and a leisurely sea kayak back
to the Bremen putout. Of course, we also
stopped for some ice cream at Round
Top on the van ride home. We felt like
accomplished wilderness campers as we
rolled back up the hill to Kieve.

Jr. Kieve Respect

Bremen Landing & Hog Island

Ben Swanson, HBC

Day 1 - July 10th:

There are some men in this world who
are immune to the call of the wild and can
easily content themselves with an indoor
life. For others, the call is an irresistible
sirens' song forcing these men to brave
the wilderness and reconnect with their
mountain man roots. JK Respect is made
of these men. So on July 10th, 2013
A.D., these brave young souls set forth
from Camp Kieve for two days of pure
intensity.

After a quick game of "Heads Up" -
won, of course, by Peter McGill - and a
nutritious lunch of hardcore turkey and
roast beef sandwiches, the men of JK
Respect loaded onto the Snowgoose III
for a great day on the water. The weather
was a cool seventy degrees without a ray
of sun in the sky, but this was no match
for the young adventurers of JK Respect.
Within minutes of hitting the water, the
cabin and Cap'n Bill were pulling in
lobster traps, with Jameson DeNyse and
Henry Seidenberg taking a strong lead on
the hauling. The proud young men of JK
Respect managed to catch three lobsters
with the traps, two of which ended up
being large enough to keep. The boys
then decided to call a challenge out to
the seas, attempting to see which was
more stubborn, the frigid waters of the
Atlantic Ocean, or a crew of ten-year-old
boys determined to go swimming despite
the weather. Although most of the boys
undertook this challenge, Luc Ribault
and Jackson Alvord made formidable
attempts at defeating the ocean, jumping
off the roof of the Snowgoose an estimated
thirty times combined.

As the boys wrapped up swimming,
the boat turned towards Hog Island to
meet up with the JK Kindness cabin.
The boys were introduced to Hog Island
Ryan and Audubon Aaron who taught
them about the many varied ecosystems
on the island. Griffin Makovsky and Ben
Thompson got particularly familiar with
the Touch Tank, learning all about the
tide pool creatures while simultaneously
terrifying their subjects. The crew then

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chowed down on top quality burgers
followed up by S 'Mores roasted over a
roaring fire on the beach.

After dinner and dessert, Audubon
Aaron taught the boys about how to
improve their night vision and the
stunning sparking abilities of the
wintergreen life saver molecule, at which
point Daniel Cicero's mouth looked like
a veritable fireworks show. Hog Island
Ryan then took the cabin down to the
dock where they all stuck their hands in
the water. As the boys began to splash,
their eyes widened as the sea lit up
from the flashing of the bioluminescent
microorganisms. To quote the ever- wise
Johnny Silver, it was "the coolest thing
ever" and immediately became a favorite

memory that will stand the test of time.
Day 2 - July 11th:

The next morning the campers woke
up bright and early to start the day the
minute the counselors knocked on
the tents to wake them. For breakfast,
the boys fueled up with hot breakfast
sandwiches fresh off the grill. The boys
enjoyed their food while Zane Bhatti
enjoyed the emotional rollercoaster of
raised and crushed hopes that came
with rolling dice to determine who ate
next. After breakfast, the boys turned to
the guidance of Audubon Aaron, who
led them on a short hike around the
island, explaining the history of the land
and the role that the Native Americans
played in its past. During a brief stop on
the shoreline. Carter Alvord and James
Kontulis got to try a fine sampling of
"nature's pop rocks," each taking several
nutritious sand fleas down the gullet.

As their time on Hog Island drew to
a close, the young men of JK Respect
packed up their things and were ferried
across the bay by Cap'n Bill and the
Snowgoose before quickly piling into
the vans. The boys were then allowed to
experience the anguish of counselor Ben
Swanson driving the van into the parking
lot of Round Top only to pull back
out for a brief detour for swimming at
Damariscotta Mills. Trey Souder showed
off his expert cannonballs that seemed to
soak everyone within a half-mile radius
when he jumped from the bridge. Having
been sufficiently refreshed by the Mills,
the cabin loaded back into the van to go
back to Round Top, this time actually
stopping for ice cream. The cabin
returned to camp tired, full of ice cream,
and psyched from a fantastic trip.

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South Glenayr
Damariscotta Lake
Cole Phillips

We just returned from our one-day
primer which tested our skills and wits.
We faced rain, fog, and battled the cross
winds in order to finally arrive at Cool
Island. We quickly set up our tents
and indulged in some grilled cheese
and tomato soup to warm some chilly
campers. Afterwards we stuck out the
rain beneath our 20' by 20' cooking tarp
and indulged in a large game of dice.
The energy was palpable and we played
multiple rounds that ultimately ate up
four hours. Before we knew it, the rain
had passed and it was time for bacon
cheeseburgers with lettuce and tomatoes.
They boys devoured their burgers and
were looking for S'Mores. Angus, Brent,
and Graham were our wood duty and
did the best they could to find some dry
tinder. Eventually, the fire did take and
everyone enjoyed two S'Mores a piece.
The night came to an end with a murder
mystery about long lost twins from across
the world. The boys made their way to
their tents just after 9:30 in groups of four.
The tent groups were Angus, Stephen,
and Colin; Graham, Oliver, Mishka, and
Remy; Cooper, Sam, and Brent; Ben, Nic,
and Henry.

The next morning we woke up to the
smell of bacon and eggs on the grill. We
made bacon, egg and cheeses with hot
sauce. Colin and Stephen volunteered to
clean the cooking equipment and did a
great job. We packed up our camps and
loaded the canoes for a short voyage
to a Kieve dock where we all went for
a refreshing swim. After three hours of
swimming and fun we made our way
back to camp.

South Glenayr
Sugarloaf Mountain
Cole Phillips, HBC

Day 1:

On the 13th of July South Glenayr
embarked on their primary trip to
Sugarloaf Mountain. We packed the
vans during duties and were on the road
by 10:30 A.M. Our destination for the
coming two days was Cathedral Pines
Campground in Eustis, Maine. After a
three-hour drive we set up camp. The
tent groups were Oliver, Angus, Ben,
and Remy; Mishka, Sam, and Stephen;
Colin, Brent, and Nic; Graham, Cooper,
and Henry. After setting up out Marmot
tents we drew a four square court in
the sandy ground and the boys played
four square as the counselors cooked up
cheese steaks with caramelized onions
and peppers. The boys enjoyed dinner
and afterwards Stephen led the cleaning.
He did a great job! Once everything was
cleaned up, the sun was setting and we
sat around the fire and enjoyed a story
about bankrobbers with Oreos for dessert.
Everyone went to sleep with our hike up
Sugarloaf tomorrow in mind.
Day 2:

With a 7:30 wake up, we all had bagels
and cream cheese and two Pop Tarts
each. We drove to the base of Sugarloaf
and looked up at our hike as we prepared
our minds and bodies with a stretch and
a conversation about the hike. We began
the hike at 9 and the sun was beating
down and the trail was steep. After many
water breaks. Brent and Cooper led the
charge to the top with Remy, Stephen,
Angus, and Sam taking up the back of
the group. We made it to the summit of
the mountain at 12:30 for peanut butter

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and jelly with Snickers with a side of
teriyaki beef jerky.

Fully refueled Oliver, Colin, Mishka,
and Ben charged down the mountain
and our descent was quick. We made it
to the van in record time and were off
the mountain at 2:45. We returned to
our campsite for a rest and, after an hour
of sleep, everyone was back at the four
square court where Graham, Nic, and
Henry continued to dominate the king
square. Everyone needed a clean so we
went to the beach and enjoyed a tub and
a snack of Cheese-Its. For dinner that
night we had a meat and veggie Dank.
Colin is a vegetarian so he was served
first with no meat on his plate. The night
concluded with S 'Mores and another
story around the fire.
Day 3:

After a well-deserved sleep-in, the
campers woke up to half cake mix and
half pancake mix pancakes with Oreo
crumbles and M&Ms. Our clean-up was
swift and efficient after the boys had
practiced leave no trace methods. We
cleaned up our campsite and checked
out of Cathedral Pines Campground at
11 o'clock. We stopped at Subway on the
way home and everyone enjoyed a 6-inch
sub, chips, and the choice of lemonade
or water. Bellies full, we got back in the
van and were back in Damariscotta. But
the trip wasn't over yet! We had Round
Top ice cream and were happily greeted
by four other cabins at Round Top. We
recounted our trips with our fellow
campers and were back at Kieve at 4.
The trip may have had some tears but
we all remembered the great moments
we had and that's what's important.
South Glenayr did a great job and we
accomplished all that we had in mind.

North Glenayr

Mt. Megunticook Primer Trip

June 28th

We woke to torrential rain but the
moods of the boys in North Glenayr were
far from bad. We were ready to take on our
first trip of the session. The Fresh Princes
of Glenayr do not shy away in the face of
a little... or a lot... of rain. We packed our
gear and hopped in the van for an hour
car ride to Camden Hills National Park to
take on big, bad Mt. Megunticook. Upon
arriving to the campsite we began setting
up our tents in a light drizzle. The rain
hadn't completely stopped, but it was
weak enough to get our tents up. Charlie
Riker, Brooks Catlin, and Harry Bell,
all new campers, were taught by their
veteran peers the proper way to set up
and take down Eurekas.

After tents were up the boys had to
put on a song and dance routine in their
tent groups. The winner of the best song
and dance would be the first to receive a
delicious and nutritious lunch of turkey
sandwiches. Thanks to Cliff Belknap's
amazing dance skills, his tent group
ate lunch first. After lunch we found
a pavilion where we could play cards
and a couple games of Mafia while we
waited out the rain. After an hour or
so we decided that this rain wasn't
going to stop our hike and we headed
off to take on Mt. Battle. Caleb Conner
and Burnham Johnston were the first to
summit followed by the rest of the cabin.
At the top we feasted on Rice Krispy
treats and had a wonderful view of fog.
"It was like being in a cloud" remarked
Brennan Escobar.

After arriving back at camp, Tomas
Stockton led the group in several games
of Mafia while the counselors created an
amazing meal of chicken, bacon, ranch,
BBQ, cheese, lettuce, and tomato burgers.
These were a cabin favorite. Collin
Rodrigue (Gooey) stated that, "they were
like tasting heaven on my tongue". After
several hours of more Mafia and a large
game of tag, the tuckered-out young
lads found comfort in their nice warm
sleeping bags. End of day one.
June 29th

When we awoke the next morning,
not much had changed. There was still
an eerie cloud of fog resting on our
campsite. The men of NG would not
let this dampen their spirits: they were
ready to take on Megunticook. After a
long breakfast of maple bacon pancakes,
which Sam Hall called, "a feast for the
mouth and the eyes", we loaded the gear
in the van and headed off to summit the
un-summitable. The back of the group
was reserved for the International Best
Friends; this was a group that consisted
of Charlie Riker, representing Bermuda,
Lucas Falezan, representing France, and
Vedant Kiyawat, representing India.
These three boys decided to make the
most of the damp trip and took in as much
of nature as possible. Cobey Blumenthal
was the first to summit followed by the
rest of the cabin. It only took us several
hours to get up and down. By the time
we entered the vans, we were happy with
what we had accomplished and ready
to take on our main trip to Fort Island
within the next few days. End of trip.

Ricky Nix, HBC NG

North Glenayr
Fort Island

July 7th, 2013

The Fresh Princes and I woke to a
beautiful day, ready to take on the day
ahead. After packing the bus for several
hours, we headed off with Reid Anderson
toward our put-in, in South Bristol. Upon
arriving at the dock all the boys hopped
to it and started getting out the gear and
loading up canoes. After collecting our
bearings we headed off in the ocean for
our several mile paddle to Fort Island,

125

which we heard was a tropical paradise.
Everyone paddled very well that day.
There was a canoe of three people, which
consisted of Ben Clark, Cliff Belknap,
and Brennan Escobar.

As we approached the island, the
current picked up and we were pushed
back no matter how hard we paddled.
At this point we also noticed the buoys
in the water coming to attack us. These
buoys narrowly missed my boat which
had Collin Rodrigue (Gooey) in it. The
buoys almost destroyed the boat with
Sam Hall and Burnham Johnston in it.
Luckily we all survived.

After arriving on the island we
unloaded all the gear and set up the
tents. The boys then had a delicious
lunch of PBJH's and set off to explore.
While half of the group explored, the
other half went swimming with some of
the counselors. This went on for several
hours until dinner. For this meal the
boys had to do a skit, which depicted
what Luke, Foxy, and myself were like
when we were not in camp. Needless to
say the skits were iffy at best. For dinner
that night we had Philly Cheese Steaks
and then the children went to bed.
July 8th, 2013

The boys had a wonderful sleep-in

this morning, and by sleep-in I mean
that they were up at 6:30. We started
the day off with bacon, lots of bacon,
more bacon, and bacon, egg, and cheese
sandwiches. These sandwiches were
wonderful, as Tomas Stockton put it, 'T
wouldn't want to eat bacon any other
way". After breakfast we played several
different games.

The boys went exploring in search of
the fort for which the island is named.
No fort was found. The International
Best Friends, which consists of Verdant
Kiyawat, Charlie Riker, and Lucas
Falezan, created their own fort in a tree.
The fort was called 'Zone X' and soon
after its creation, it was destroyed for
firewood. Needless to say the boys were
not happy about this and pouted for an

126

hour until the incident was forgotten.

For lunch the boys had a wonderful
meal of turkey and ham sandwiches.
They love sandwiches; it is all they
ever want to eat. I can't explain to you
enough how much these boys love their
sandwiches, it really truly astounds me.
I recall Caleb Conner saying to me, "if I
could be made of any food it would be
bread so that I could tear off my leg and
make a sandwich with it." I found this
somewhat disturbing but he's only a kid,
so what do I know.

Throughout the day we had a fire
roaring, this fire stayed lit all day until
the wee hours of the night. For dinner
the boys had to prepare a four-act
performance about the history of Kieve
which included the genres of drama,
romance, mystery, and intrigue. These
skits were wonderful. For dinner we had
pesto, bacon, chicken pasta, a favorite of
these boys since they were young little
■ South Glenayrians. Brooks Catlin said,
"this pasta is the only thing I ever want
to eat for the rest of my life, Ricky Nix is
a culinary genius". After dinner the boys
snuggled into their tents, waiting for the
paddle ahead.
July 9th, 2013

The boys woke up bright and early
today, ready to paddle home. After a quick
breakfast of scrambled eggs and bacon,
the boys packed up their belongings
and tents, readied the canoes, and did
a final trash sweep of the campsite
using their new-found LNT knowledge.
After double-checking the campsite, we
headed back into the ocean for another
day of intense paddling. The sprits of
these boys could not be higher, even
when the skies opened up and it began
to pour rain. I mean these conditions
literally could have been a mini-plot in
the movie "The Perfect Storm". These
boys grappled with life and death today
and won. It took us several hours and
thousands of snacks but we finally made
it to our Damariscotta take-out, where
Mr. Bob Linker met us with the bus. The
boys said farewell to their life at sea, but
will never forget the event of their trip to
Fort Island. Ricky Nix over and out.

Ricky Nix HBC NG

North Townsend
Mt. Megunticook
John Goodman, HBC

A week into camp, the seventeen of
us over at North Townsend decided
it was time to get out into the woods,
and in preparation for our longer trip to
Fort Island, we made moves to mosey
to the mighty Mt. Megunticook. We all
piled into a fifteen-passenger van and a
minivan and headed north to Camden.
Once there, we decided to warm up
with a hike up Mt. Battle, the summit of
which we reached in impressive time,
with Chase and Jack, excited for the
hike, being among the first to reach the
summit. We had some snacks upon the
mount and then headed back down the
way we came.

We returned to camp and prepared a
dinner of cheeseburgers, with the tent
groups competing with skits a la an in-
camp General Swim while the counselors
cooked. With plenty of bacon, we all
enjoyed our burgers, and following a
quick team-building challenge for the
cabin and a long game of Batman and
Sherlock Holmes Mafia, we had a dessert
of some fudge from the Camden store.

The next day we awoke and broke
down camp before strapping on our
hiking boots to head up Megunticook.
On the climb we chatted about movies,
inventions, and other things, and, after
a few obstacles, we reached the summit.
We all shared a snack of Snickers, and
began the trek down. Having already
dismantled the tarps and tents, all we
needed to do before heading back south
was refill our water bottles and go to the
bathroom. Soon we were on the road
back to Damariscotta, primed and ready
for Fort.

North Townsend

Fort Island

John Goodman, HBC

July 10

On the tenth of July, the boys of North
Townsend enjoyed a hardy Pasquaney
breakfast before all piling into a bus to be
driven to the coast by Reid. Once there,
we prepared to set off for the great Fort

127

Island, filling our boats with food, water,
tents, and other supplies. A level fog
had meandered out over the sea, and the
paddle was quick as we cut through the
mist toward our goal: a small island near
the mouth of the Damariscotta River.
Some sturdy paddling assured that we
were there within ninety minutes, and
we were certain to pull our canoes all the
way above the tide line before setting up
camp.

Soon all of our tents were set up, and
we began the process of preparing our
dinner of Philly Cheese Steaks. First, we
gathered the firewood we would need to
get light after sunset, with A.J. especially
proving himself a firewood all-star,
collecting probably a third of the group's
firewood himself. Soon the campers
prepared skits to compete between tent
groups before dinner, with especially
memorable performances from Walt
and Brady. The dinner, prepared by
our hypercompetent junior counselor
Warren, was delicious and filling, and
we entertained ourselves with stories
and riddles, with Jackson and Luke
agonizing for the better part of an hour
ever a riddle involving an albatross that
I had remembered from my days as a
camper, before unraveling the solution
with great satisfaction. Soon it was time
for bed, and we all retreated to our tents
looking forward to tomorrow's day on
the island.
July 11

The day began with some bacon
and egg sandwiches, and from there
we launched right into a few games of
Sniper. As the tide came in, a rock that
we had previously wandered out to
explore its tidepools suddenly became
separated from us by a daunting swim,
but one which was no match for Grady,
Jack, Max, and Liam, who all decided
to go for a swim and make it to the rock
before the sea once again receded from
the coast. We kept a warm fire going
through most of the day for the benefit of
our swimmers, and a few of the kids took
advantage of this when they found some
clay underneath the beach. James was
able to make a small pinch pot, and, with
the help of the counselors, fire it in the
campfire. As the afternoon continued.

128

Liam entertained the group with some
tales of Odysseus, and Chase with
some jokes. After some games of Mafia
with innovative turns as the narrator by
Wah and Alex, it was time for a lunch
of chili con carne. Following lunch, we
thoroughly explored the mighty Fort
Island. It being curiously devoid of any
forts, A.J., Grady, and others, decided
to build their own out of sticks. Soon
it was time for dinner, for which we
prepared a Kieve classic: a hot pot of
fresh Dank. Warner volunteered to help
wash the dishes for the second night in
a row, much to the gratitude of all of
us. Nightfall brought with it some more
games and stories around the fire, as
well as a pleasant dessert of S 'Mores. We
went to bed and awoke well rested in the
morning for our long paddle home.
July 12

The morning brought with it sunny
weather and few headwinds, and we left
early in order to have the tide with us
rather than against us. With some oatmeal
in our bellies, we pushed off and headed
for the mouth of the Damariscotta River,
which we reached in good enough time
that we could stop on a bank for some
tuna sandwiches. Within a few hours
we reached the town of Damariscotta,
and the driving duo of Lincoln/Linker
arrived in the Kieve bus to pick us up.
After a stop at Round Top Ice Cream, we
found our way back home to camp, after
a satisfying trip.

South Bunkerhill

Hog Island

Nat Shenton, HBC

Day One, (7/4):

We left camp the morning of July 4th,
and headed out to the Bremen landing.
Hog Island Ryan and Audubon Aaron
met us at the dock to be our guides
while we were on the island. They
carried our gear over to the island for
us while we "fun-yaked" there. Hugh
and Teddy led the charge to the island.
Once at the island, we unpacked camp
and had cold cuts for lunch. Ryan and
Aaron took us for an afternoon paddle,
where we saw seals and jumped off a
rock. For dinner we had burgers with
potatoes on the side. After dinner we
had an American-themed scavenger hunt
across the island, the Bald Eagles, made
of Max, Alex, Harry, and Campbell, won.
When it got dark out we had our own
4th of July celebration on the dock with
sparklers and phosphorescent algae. We
also watched the fireworks being set off
from across the bay. The boys were tired
after a busy day and immediately went
to bed.

Day Two, (7/5):

We woke up to breakfast sandwiches
the next morning. Ryan took the kids
jumping off the dock for a while. Brooks
and Carter enjoyed this very much.
We also learned about the mystery of
the day as well, asking why bugs have
superpowers. Then the boys went for
a hike on the island. William and Cam
were very interested in the carnivorous
plants we found in the bog. Henry and
Ben really liked the moss-covered forest.
We walked thru different parts of the

129

island until we reached a sandy beach
where Kieran and Zach really liked to
swim. From the beach, we walked back
to camp and we had sunbutter and jelly
sandwiches. After lunch, we thanked
Ryan and Aaron for showing us around
Hog Island over the past day and "fun-
yaked" back to the mainland to head
back to camp.

South Bunkerhill
White Mountains
Nat Shenton, HBC

Day One:

We woke up and had a wonderful
breakfast at Pasquaney. After a brief
clean-up of the cabin, we hit the road
and headed to the White Mountains for
Shenton Tour 2013. There was a brief
stop in Bethel, for a lunch of turkey cold
cuts. We reached our campsite around
2:30 where the boys set up tents. Once
the campsite was ready, we went to a
local swimming hole, where Kieran and
Brooks found a natural water slide to play
in. We were back in time for dinner where
we had cheesesteaks. Harry Saridakis
and William Scott helped cook. We spent
the rest of the night telling ghost stories
about the White Mountains.
Day Two:

The Mt. Washington day. After a quick
breakfast of bagels and cream cheese, we
drove down to the trailhead at Pinkham
Notch and were on the trail by 9 o'clock.
For the hike up, we went up the Lions
Head Trail, where we took a long break
at the famous rock formation at the
false peak. The boys loved looking out
onto Tuckerman's Ravine. From here,
we made the final push to the summit,
which Alex Maruszewski and Ben
Scully were the first ones to reach. The
boys were disappointed to see that there
was a road and train at the summit. We
had lunch of sun-butter and jelly at the
top of the mountain. We went down
the Tuckerman's Ravine trail and made
it back to camp in time for a dinner of
barbecue chicken and river rice. The
boys had S'Mores for dessert and played
Mafia.
Day Three:

For the rest of the trip, we tried to

130

go to places where no cabin has been
before. We went to Arethusa Falls in
Crawford Notch, the tallest waterfall in
New Hampshire. Campbell Bell and Max
Gilbert climbed up to see how far up the
fall they could get. On the 1.3-mile hike
out, we stopped at three more waterfalls,
with each having its own swimming spot.
Hugh Zanelli and Brooks Allen loved the
ice-cold water at the last swimming hole.
On our way back, we stopped in Crawford
Notch for lunch; we had a great view
of Mt. Washington and delicious tuna.
We also stopped at the same swimming
hole as the first day. For dinner we had
burritos, and played a game of Ultimate
Frisbee as an evening activity.
Day Four:

To continue the theme of visiting new
places, we decided to hike Hedgehog
Mountain in the southern Whites. The
boys were extremely excited to find wild
blueberries lining the trail; Cameron
Thompson and Campbell Bell were
especially excited. This mountain gave
us a great view of almost the entire range.
We made it back to the van by lunch,
where we stopped at a nearby gorge to
enjoy some sun-butter and jelly. We also
stopped at a waterfall to cool off from the
90-degree weather. Kieran Blunnie and
Carter Vincent loved swimming in the
rapids right under the waterfall because
they could jump into the deep water and
let the current sweep them away. For
dinner we had pesto-alfredo chicken,
which was a huge hit with the kids.
Before bed the boys shared their highs
and lows of the trip with each other.
Day Five:

For the last day of the trip, we had a
special breakfast of fresh eggs and bacon,
a rarity in the woods. After breakfast we
packed up camp, and hit the road. On our
way back we stopped in Cape Elizabeth at
Drew Grennon's for lunch. He lives right
on the water, so we ordered pizzas and
enjoyed them with a lovely view of the
ocean. After the pizzas were finished, the
boys played in the large tide pool. Teddy
Donohue and Henry Bright enjoyed the
many crabs found in the pool. Soon it
was time to continue back to camp. We
made a brief but enjoyable stop at Round
Top to celebrate a successful trip.

131

South Cunningham
Hog Island
Graham Abbey, HBC

Day One:

After breakfast in Pasquaney, South
Cunningham practiced setting up our
tents on the Buck Porch. Around us,
pouring rain threatened the comfort and
security of our trip. Undaunted, we piled
into vans and departed Kieve at about
noon. Upon arriving at Kieve Landing in
Bremen, we were greeted by Ryan "Hog
Island Ryan" Pelletier, who gave us a
kayak clinic before ferrying our gear back
to the island. We piled in the fun-yaks
and cruised the ten-minute paddle to
Hog Island, thankful for a reprieve from
the foul weather.

Once on Hog Island, we set up camp,
watched an osprey vault from its nest and
enjoyed cold cut sandwiches. Shortly
thereafter, we were welcomed into the
Audubon Society lab, pondering the
"Mystery of the Day" (Why is the ocean
blue) and exploring the touch tank, a
plexi-glass roofless aquarium featuring
crabs, starfish and other aquatic life.
We then took a short walk to a cove
where, equipped with an assortment of
nets, we explored the inter-tidal zone,
kidnapping crabs and critters to bring
back to the touch tank. Hog Island Ryan
brought us several wild edibles which
we thoroughly enjoyed tasting.

Back at camp, Chris, Ian, Vern and I
prepared an over-the-top dinner of bacon
cheeseburgers for South Cunningham.
After dinner, as the last light was fleeing
the western horizon, we embarked on
a night hike, our headlamps remaining
off to facilitate our natural night vision.
We walked in the gathering dark to
a bog where we finally illuminated
our surroundings, and discovered bog
vegetation such as the skunk cabbage and
carnivorous plants such as the Pitcher.
After we returned to camp, sleep.
Day Two:

South Cunningham woke up early in
the morning, feasting on an ample eggs
and bacon breakfast. While we were fixing
our food. Hog Island Ryan taught the boys
to sustainably harvest mussels, a task at
which the boys excelled, quickly filling

our pot to the brim. Leaving the mussels
to soak in fresh water, we embarked on
a two-mile walk on muddy trails under
the canopy. At one particularly mossy
spot, we separated in order to sit in
silence for ten minutes and simply listen
to our surroundings. Later we came upon j
a beach where we rested before turning
back towards camp, playing a game of j
"Ambush" on the trail. ?

Once back at camp, we dined on PB&J
while I prepared the mussels, steamed
under seaweed with a broth of butter, '
wild garlic, chive, and pepper leaves. -
Every camper tried one; nearly every
camper enjoyed. We left the sanctuary
in the early afternoon, paddling back to
Kieve Landing and returning to camp ]
primed for our upcoming excursion to
the White Mountains.

132

South Cunningham
White Mountains
Graham Abbey, HBC

July 2

We departed camp around 11 a.m.,
making great time to New Hampshire
with a brief stop for ham and cheese at
a Hannaford near Welchville. Once we
arrived at Barnes Field, we set up camp
and promptly created a Frisbee golf
course. A delicious dinner of authentic
Philly cheesesteaks was followed by
songs around the campfire accompanied
by Ian Travis and his guitar; we laid
down our heads for some rest.
Julys

South Cunningham woke up early and
scarfed a quick breakfast of Pop Tarts and
cold bacon. We got an early start on our
ascent towards Slide Peak above Glen
Boulder from the Glen Ellis trail area.
The climb was steep and the air under the
canopy was muggy under overcast skies.
Despite some difficulty in getting into a
good hiking rhythm, we managed to get
up above the tree line into the alpine zone
and experience some beautiful views at
Glen Boulder and up towards Slide Peak.
Unfortunately on our descent, Henry
Pohle took a rough spill that resulted in a
cut on his forehead that would ultimately
require a trip to the hospital. Thankfully,
Henry returned by dinner, all smiles.
The cabin enjoyed chicken bacon ranch
sandwiches. After dinner, more campfire
singing and an early night's sleep.
July 4

To celebrate Independence Day, the
young men of South Cunningham went to
an all American swimming hole. Emerald
Pool, after a relaxing morning of bacon
and oatmeal. We thoroughly enjoyed our
swim, marveling at the healing powers of
the emerald water to cure the itchiness
of bug bites. Remarkably, every camper
in our cabin jumped off of the ten-foot
cliff into the water, including Jordan
Orloff who triumphed over his fear of
heights. After returning to Barnes Field,
we enjoyed Frisbee golf and reading time
before a hearty meal of rice pilaf, bacon,
sausage, and sauteed veggies. To cap off
the night, we sang campfire songs and
got our rest early, eager and anxious for

the following day's attempt to summit

Mt. Washington.

Julys

At 5 a.m. South Cunningham leapt up
out of bed, packed up daypacks, scarfed
down Pop Tarts and bacon, and piled
in the van for our attempt to climb Mt.
Washington. We hit the trail by 6, and
battled through early nervousness by
keeping a swift pace from Pinkham
Notch up to the Lion Head Trail. The
boys kept a steady speed, led by Chase
Wright all the way up to the Lion Head,
where we enjoyed the beautiful vistas of
the Presidential Range.

Slightly further towards the summit
we were plunged into cold soupy fog
which persisted through fierce winds
for the duration of the ascent. Our ascent
lasted just over three and a half hours.
At the summit we enjoyed sandwiches
before descending the Ravine Trail. The
weather had markedly improved by the
time we were at Tuckerman, and the
astounding amount of foot traffic made
us glad for our early start.

Soon enough we were back at Barnes
Field, lazily reading or resting. After
some afternoon rough housing, we
enjoyed the best dinner of the trip, pesto
pasta with bacon, caramelized onions,
salt and pepper. The boys went to bed
early after a bonfire of our last two
bundles of wood.
July 6

No doubt eager to get home, the boys
of South Cunningham woke up much
too early, rousting the counselors from
our tent to break camp and prepare to
leave. Unfortunately, we were ready to
depart a couple of hours too early, so we
passed the time by playing Mafia. Finally
we departed at 11, enjoying Subway in
Gorham before a smooth trip back.

North Bunkerhill I
Bald Rock Mountain

Day 1, 7/5:

After packing the night before our trip,
the boys of North Bunkerhill I loaded
up the trailer in the morning and piled
into the van for a drive to Camden Hills
State Park. Our drive took approximately
an hour, and before we were able to
set up our campsite, we had to check i
in at the gate and buy firewood. At the j
campsite, we learned that group gear is |
always unloaded first, as well as how to
set up a tent. After all the tents were set
up, we had a delicious lunch of cold cut
sandwiches with hummus and celery
sticks.

Once we had bomb-proofed our tents
and gear. North Bunkerhill I jumped
into our van and drove to the bottom
of the hiking trail to the top of Maiden
Cliffs. We trailblazed our way to the top,
where we had a hearty snack. At the
top of the Cliffs we found the trail and *
proceeded down it. We arrived back in |
the parking lot and decided to take a i
swim in Megunticook Lake, which we
had seen from the top of the Cliffs, and
which looked most relaxing and cooling.
After our quick dip, we headed back to
the campsite for a bacon cheeseburger
dinner. We finished off the night with
some hot chocolate, and went to sleep
ready for our hike of Bald Rock Mountain
the next day. >
Day 2, 7/6: |

This morning we woke up to the j
smell of bacon, egg, and cheese bagel \
sandwiches being made. After a long !
breakfast, we packed up our gear, loaded :
it into the trailer for the trip back to
camp, and drove to the trailhead at Bald j
Rock Mountain. The trail started off as a !
wide dirt road, but we soon arrived at the
bottom of the actual hiking trail to the ]
top of the mountain. The steady incline,
heat, and humidity all left us sweating
profusely by the time we arrived at
the top. The view did not disappoint
anyone. The perfect weather allowed
us to witness an impeccable view of the
ocean. Many sailboats dotted the dark
blue abyss of the West Penobscot Bay.
Our tuna fish sandwiches on pita bread

134

did even more to brighten our spirits.

After a little more time at the top of
the mountain, we descended to our van,
which we used (with conditioned air) to
drive, satisfied, back to camp. Our boys
are now ready for the challenge of the
mighty St. Croix River.

Will Phifer

North Bunkerhill I
St. Croix River

Day 1, 7/11:

We woke up on Day 1 after a long night
of packing our gear and cleaning the cabin
so that it would be inspection-ready.
Both campers and counselors brought
their gear to the Buck building, where
our bus. Perseverance II, was waiting for
us. We loaded our coolers, wannigans,
and gear into both the trailer and the
back of the bus. Once Henry Kennedy,
our driver, arrived, we hopped into the
bus with two Allagash boys who were
going back out on their trip, and began
on our own journey to the Northeastern
border of Maine.

Although a few boys got carsick on the
ride up, including William Baratta and
Brooks Sleeper, we had a good time eating
a breakfast of bagels and cream cheese,
listening to NPR, and eating chips and
drinking soda that we had purchased at a
gas station along the way. When we got to
our put-in location, we unloaded all our
gear from the trailer and bus, including
the canoes resting on top of the trailer.
Once Henry and the Allagash boys left
to drive up north to the Allagash River,
we packed up our canoes for the short
paddle to Birch Island, our first campsite.
Paul Sullivan was selected to ride in the
mojo position for the first day.

The boys were excited when we paddled
across Lake Spednic and into Canadian
waters. Jackson Eisen's boat enjoyed
setting the pace for the canoes. Shortly
after this, we arrived at our campsite,
where two men with a motorboat were
finishing up their lunch. We stayed out
of their way while we set up our tents
and bomb proofed our group gear. Once
the men left on their motorboat, we set
up a lunch of cold cut sandwiches with
pastrami, ham, and turkey meats.

135

After this, we had plenty of free time
to explore the island, fish, and read our
books. For dinner, we had some delicious
chicken, bacon, and ranch burgers. Alex
Naber finished his sandwich perhaps
the fastest. We went to sleep ready for
a big paddle across the wide lake in the
morning.
Day 2, 7/12:

This morning we woke up to get
ready for our paddle across the biggest
part of the lake. We ate bacon, egg, and
cheese bagel sandwiches to fuel up for
the day's trip. Once we packed up our
canoes, we began the paddle across the
lake by heading to Sandy Point for lunch
by way of Norway Point. For lunch, we
had peanut butter or sun butter with jelly
and honey sandwiches in a Canadian
cove with reeds. After some fishing, and
a reapplication of sunscreen, we finally
arrived at our campsite. Squatter's Point,
tired and ready to set up camp for the
night. After some fishing and swimming,
we made bacon cheeseburgers early and
in the sunlight for dinner. When we
finished, we ate S 'Mores, of which Tyler
Eichmann had at least five, around the
fire before calling it a night early so that
we would be ready for the long paddle.
Day 3, 7/13:

We woke up at five in the morning in
order to get an early start on the longest
and hardest day of the trip. We packed
up our gear and then had a quick, energy-
packed breakfast of oatmeal with brown
sugar. We left our campsite quickly, and
paddled to Todd's Island, onto Nason
Point, through Indian Channel, and
stopped in Mollie Cove for a snack. After
this short break, we continued paddling
through Horse Cove, past Ice House
Point, and into the small American town
of Vanceboro, where we portaged around
the dam and into the St. Croix River.

After the portage, we waited under
cover of the shade of the trees while the
counselors bought the campers Mountain
Dew, Doritos, and Smart Food popcorn.
Once we had eaten our snacks, we began
the fast-moving river portion of our trip.
Although we often ran aground on rocks,
we enjoyed the moving river and rips
that carried us swiftly down the border
between New Brunswick and Maine.

136

For lunch, we stopped at English Cove
campsite and had tuna fish on pita bread
with ample amounts of hot sauce.

After a while on the river, we finally
arrived at Little Falls, the highlight of
the trip. We unloaded our gear at the
campsite, which overlooked the falls,
and were set to run the falls dry. As
campers watched, boats started heading
down river right where the biggest drop,
about four feet, waited for us. While the
first boat, carrying Joseph Scinto and Will
Phifer, flipped, all the other boats were
able to make it down safely. Everyone
enjoyed the drop immensely, especially
Sam Kartsonis.

After we dragged our canoes back to
the bottom of our campsite and flipped
them over on land for nighttime storage,
we headed back up the hill to our
campsite, where we had a pesto chicken
pasta dinner, followed by hot chocolate
around the campfire, and everyone
enjoying Liam Piper's laugh. Although
Zeke Reilly had a hot chocolate mishap,
he was eventually able to enjoy his hot
beverage as well. Satisfied after a long,
arduous day, the boys of North Bunkerhill
I slept peacefully all night long and well
into the morning.
Day 4, 7/14:

On this day, we woke up late and
cooked corned beef hash for breakfast.
While breakfast was being cooked, the
boys brought up their canoes on the
portage trail so that we could run Little
Falls again. After breakfast, we shot down
the Falls, and this time, no one flipped.
Jack Warren, who was riding in the mo jo
position the day before, was able to ride
in the stern this day. At the bottom of

the Falls, we loaded up our canoes and
began a slow paddle down the moving
river.

We had a classic Kieve pepperoni and
cheese with pita lunch at the American
campsite adjacent to the Canadian
Ruisseau Scott Brook Provincial Park
campsite. When we finished our lunch,
we continued our lazy paddle down the
river all the way to Loon Bay. There was
plenty of fishing during the paddle, and
the counselors were able to catch a few
fish.

At Loon Bay, we set up our tents and
began to cook dinner, which was cheesy
dank pasta. Although we wanted to eat
outside, the mosquitoes quickly became
too dense, so we had to retreat to our
tents to finish up dinner. After this, the
counselors lured the campers out of
their tents with offers of a Snickers bar
if they cleaned the pots. Such a request
was deemed appropriate to the campers,
and cleaning commenced. After a few
minutes, the cleaning was complete, and
the campers were given their candy bars
as they headed back to their tents to again
withdraw from the mosquitoes.
Day 5,7/15:

We awoke on the earlier side of the
morning so that we could arrive at our
campsite earlier than we had been
arriving to our campsites the previous
days. For breakfast, we ate pancakes
expertly cooked by Will Stevens. We left
Loon Bay soon after we packed up, and
proceeded down the river, which picked
up speed again for a while, including
Canoose Ledges, a drop similar to, but
smaller than. Little Falls. After a few
more rips, the current died down, and

137

we began paddling harder so as to get to
our campsite for lunch. At the very end
of our paddling, the river quickened its
pace slightly.

We pulled into our campsite at Egg
Point just in time for lunch, which was
peanut butter or sun butter with jelly and
honey on a pita. The campers had plenty
of time to swim in the light current in
their life jackets as the sun began to set. Si
Cunningham especially enjoyed himself
in the warm waters. When everyone had
finished swimming, we discovered two
snapping turtles near the rocks we had
been swimming next to, and the activity
of the turtles became the most popular
topic of conversation for the rest of the
night, especially for our resident nature
expert, Matthew Brown. For dinner,
we ate beef stew with pita bread. After
dinner, we distributed the leftover snacks
to the rest of the campers, and then went
to sleep, ready to be picked up in the
morning.
Day 6, 7/16:

On our final morning we woke up early
and ate an oatmeal breakfast so that we
would have plenty of time to get to our
pull-out zone. We packed up our gear for
the last time and headed out onto Grand
Falls Flowage, the lake that leads to our
takeout point at the dam. After a few
water breaks, we arrived at our takeout
point early. Luckily, the One was already
waiting for us and blasting heavy metal
from the bus.

We loaded up the trailer and the back
of the bus with our gear and canoes,
and our drive back to camp began. We
stopped in the nearby town of Princeton,
ME, to pick up some Cokes and chips for
the ride back. We then proceeded west
to 1-95, which brought us to Bangor.
In Bangor, we brought the boys first to
Five Guys Burgers and Fries, and then to
Subway. Will Zierden was able to enjoy
his first Five Guys burger ever while we
were there. Our last stop brought us to
Big G's sandwich shop before we finally,
victoriously entered camp just before
dinnertime. I'm extremely impressed
with how well the boys performed on the
trip, and I look forward to seeing them
succeed on future Kieve expeditions.

Will Phifer

North Bunkerhill II
Bald Rock Mountain
Mike Orr, HBC

7/1

It is now July and the boys of North
Bunkerhill II were getting a little sick
of just sitting around camp. So after
breakfast, we packed up, and headed
out to Camden Hills State Park. The
hour or so drive was nice, with a great
playlist with the favorite song being
Bohemian Rhapsody. After checking
in with the ranger, we set up our tents
and I immediately began making grilled
cheeses. As soon as lunch was over, we
piled back into the van and took off for
Maiden Cliffs.

The hike was a great warm-up and we
completed the mile in no time. The view
from the top was spectacular, with a
fantastic view of Megunticook Lake. Greg
and Charlie grilled up some great bacon
burgers that night over a fire that Greg
somehow made in the rain. Many games
of Mafia were played that night while
devouring S 'Mores. Arthur and Gates
especially loved the dessert and tried to
convince me to give them more. Once
the weather took a turn for the worst, the
games ended and everyone went to sleep
with the sound of rain hitting their tent.
7/2

We awoke to a very foggy and overcast
morning. While the campers were taking
down their tents, I whipped up some
bacon, egg, and cheese sandwiches
that everyone seemed to enjoy. After
breakfast we made a final sweep of the
campground and jumped into the van,
our destination... Bald Rock Mountain.
The hike was no problem for the boys
of NBH II and we made it to the summit
in around an hour. The summit was
completely fogged in with no view
whatsoever.

Trivia determined the order for peanut
butter and jelly sandwiches that were
made by Greg and Charlie. Philip was very
helpful coming up with the questions.
We took our time at the summit and had
a good time asking questions and eating
a great lunch. The descent was quick
and we were on the road within an hour.
Round Top was the only stop on the way

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back. It was a great primer and we will be
in camp for the next week and leave for
the St. Croix River on July 9th. While the
primer was fun, it only made the cabin
more excited for the big trip.

North Bunkerhill II
St. Croix River
Mike Orr, HBC

7/9

The morning was finally upon us.
The time had come. At sunrise on the
morning of July 9th the young men
of North Bunkerhill II departed the
friendly confines of Kieve in order to
tackle the St. Croix River. With The
One behind the wheel our drive was
certainly entertaining. He gave us some
great insight on what we might expect
and what we should do if we're stuck at
a 7-11. Soon enough we arrived at the
put-in and, after a quick lunch with The
One, we shoved off to begin the six-day
adventure.

The first two days of the trip are all
lake paddling which can be tricky with
winds. Despite never doing a canoe trip
(for some it was their first time in a canoe),
they were excellent on the windy lake.
We arrived at Birch Island in the mid-
afternoon and immediately set up tents.
Bacon burgers were on the menu for the
evening, with Greg and Charlie doing a
great job cooking over the fire. The EA
for the night was our first, but certainly
not last, game of mafia. We went to bed
early knowing that tomorrow would be
a long one.
7/10

On the map, day two did not appear to
be overly difficult. However, we were in
for quite a challenging day. After some
great breakfast sandwiches, we set off
from Birch Island around 9:00. I was in
a boat with Patrick and we were the lead
canoe for the day, but Jack and Andy were
right with us the whole time. Charlie kept
us entertained during the lake paddling,
which can be somewhat boring, with
an endless supply of riddles. Reed was
easily the riddle master, solving some in
a just a few minutes.

Our lunch consisted of peanut butter,
jelly, and honey pitas. Graham saved

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the day by diving to find the honey that
somehow made its way to the bottom of
the marsh area where we were eating.
Gates, Bo, and Arthur fought over who
would finish the pitas and peanut butter,
but everyone was hoping for seconds.
Facing brutal cross winds, the boys of
NBH II traversed the vast body of Spednic
Lake to the safe shores of Canada.

We spent the night at Todd's Island,
my favorite campsite of the trip. Bo,
Nick, and Louie (with his hat) created
their own Frolf course on the island. For
dinner skits that night, each tent group
needed to prepare a scene from Harry
Potter. The group of Conner, Andy, Jack,
and Bo won and as a prize they ate the
first cheesesteaks. This was my favorite
dinner of the trip and I know others
agreed. As a treat for their great paddling,
each camper received two packets of
hot chocolate. I'm still not sure what
happened next. I poured Philip his hot
water, which spills causing him to drop
his cup. I feel some of the fallout as well,
but Aidan and Philip got the worst of it.
7/11

Day three began bright and early. Once
tents were down and after a quick Pop
Tart and Nutri-grain breakfast, we were
on the lake. Andy was in my bow today
and we played a Harry Potter/Lord of the
Rings guess who game. NBH II crushed
the morning lake paddle arriving at the
portage earlier than anticipated. In my
opinion, portages are the ultimate test
of grit and determination. Although this
one was not particularly long, it was the
first one that any of the boys had ever
done. They all did a terrific job and as
a reward, each one received a Coke from
the gas station nearby. Now we could
finally start the river part of the trip.

Seconds following departure the duo of
Arthur and Louie flipped. In a desperate
effort to save their belongings, Andy
and I flipped as well. Luckily Charlie
and Conner's canoe t-rescued ours and
Andy incredibly prevented the cooler
from opening up while floating down the
river. A pep and cheese lunch followed
the flips, Andy's favorite of the trip.

The guys had been chomping at the bit
to get to Little Falls, the biggest rapids
we would see, and the time had finally

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arrived. Only one boat flipped, which left
Patrick and Jack to float down the falls.
Unfortunately some of Jack's clothes,
including his beloved San Francisco
Giants hat, are still at the bottom of the
river. I was very proud of how NBH II
handled themselves during the rapids
and the three capsizes, which can be
hectic and confusing.

We spent the night at Baby's Grave, a
slightly creepy campsite, which is just
a short ways down from Little Falls. I
had been marinating chicken patties for
five days in BBQ sauce and they tasted
particularly juicy and tender for dinner.
This was Graham's favorite meal of the
trip. We went to bed soon after dinner as
exhaustion was finally setting in after a
long day.
7/12

A sleep-in was needed following
the three previous early mornings. We
were on the river after a bagel breakfast
around 9:00. The easy river paddling
was enjoyable, soaking in the beautiful
scenery. Soon enough, we were at the
Loon Bay campsite, one of the best of
the trip. A grilled cheese and tomato
soup lunch was cooked up upon arrival.
The lazy afternoon was quite enjoyable.
Charlie, Will, and Patrick helped me fish,
while others read and played cards. The
Kieve classic of Dank was for dinner and
no one was hungry going to bed.
7/13

Similar to the day before, we lazily
woke up around 7:30. The oatmeal for
breakfast was not particularly popular,
with Nick leaving most of his oats at the
campsite. Right off the bat we hit another
Class III rapid, this time Caboose Falls.
With the help of a quick scout, the boys
easily navigated the tricky rips. We had
pb and j sandwiches on the river while
swimming. Graham, Nick, and Andy
were creeping out everyone with their
river demon personas.

NBH II spent the night at Egg Point for
our last night, but we weren't the only
inhabitants. A family of three snapping
turtles called the campsite home and
we all had a great time watching the
terrapins swim around. For dinner
skits, well-rehearsed individual song
and dance routines were needed. Philip

won with his rendition of "I'm Yours",
but the best dancing went to Graham.
The time-consuming meal, individual
pizzas, was a great last dinner, a favorite
among many. Our last Mafia game was a
bittersweet way to end the final full day
of the trip.
7/14

Unfortunately in life, all good things
must come an end, as John Sterling once
said, and day six was the last day of our
excursion. A sloppy pancake breakfast
was our last trip meal, compliments
to Charlie, and we began our short last
paddle around 9:30. The welcome sight
of a big orange bus greeted us at the
Grand Falls Dam, with a sleeping One
inside. A stop at Five Guys on the way
back was much appreciated, especially
with a Reid and Robby sighting. It was an
amazing trip and a wonderful first time
down the St. Croix.

North Cunningham
Bald Rock Mountain
Drew Lincoln, HBC

Day One, 6/30:

The boys of North Cunningham
decided to test themselves before their
man trip on the St. Croix River and drove
to Camden Hills, only about an hour
north of Kieve. We departed around 10
a.m. to get into our campsite at Camden
around 11. We went through the proper
procedure when unloading camping gear
and setting up a campsite. The cabin
learned about LNT (Leave No Trace)
etiquette and how group gear is the first
concern when on a wilderness trip, then
personal gear. We went through the
proper ways to set up a tarp and a tent,
as well as how to make a good fire and
gather the correct firewood when in the
woods. We then had a delicious lunch of
grilled cheese and tomato soup.

After lunch, we played a cabin wide
game of ultimate Frisbee, shirts vs. skins.
Skins proved their dominance with Finn
Johnston and Henry Kenney leading the
way. Shirts were led by Spencer Sapir
and Jack Copeland. Skins had dominating
lead the majority of the time, however, a
spectacular catch by Victor Rego late in
the game changed the tide for the Shirts

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and a comeback occurred. After a long
game of ultimate Frisbee, we all went for
a short oceanside hike where we walked
along a nature trail on the rocky beach
where we found tide pools full of hermit
crabs, crabs, and different types of algae.
After the hike we headed back to camp
to get a fire going before getting dark. Javi
and Julio Baigorri built an incredible fire.
For dinner we had bacon cheeseburgers
with a surprise of S 'Mores. After some
short attempt at ghost stories we all went
to bed.

Day Two, 7/1:

We awoke around 8 a.m. to get an
early start on the hike up to Bald Rock
Mountain. We had a nice breakfast of
bacon, egg and cheese sandwiches,
packed up our campsite properly and
drove just a few miles north to the Bald
Rock Mountain trail. At the trail, we
grabbed our water bottles and headed
up the trail. A reasonably challenging
hike, the cabin had an easy time up the
mountain. When we got to the top, we had
an incredible view of the West Penobscot
Bay where we enjoyed some cold cut
sandwiches for lunch and a snack of
Oreos. After hanging out at the top for a
while, we headed down the mountain to
our van. We hopped into our vans and
headed back to camp, stopping by Round
Top, of course, beforehand.

North Cunningham

St. Croix River, July 4th- 9th

Drew Lincoln, HBC

Day One:

As the chill of the morning dew
covered the grass outside our cabin, the
sun slowly peeked through our window,
hitting our faces like a warm blanket.
The moon had gone away to see another
night and the sun now controlled our
fate. With the lake still as glass and the
loons beginning their choir of song, the
men of North Cunningham started their
morning and journey of unpredictable
outcome in the wilderness. Not only did
this morning mark the commencement of
an incredible undertaking of challenges,
both physically and mentally, for a
group of 14 young men, this day marked
a national celebration that we had the

privilege of celebrating in the wilderness.
Today was the 4th of July.

As the sun rose over the lake, we
quickly gathered our river duffels, water
bottles and headed for the trip shack to
load our canoes, pack up our food and
supplies and head to the true north
towards Canada. We departed and said
farewell to camp around 6 a.m. in the
Courage II bus driven by THE ONE' as
we strove to experience the meaning
of being an American on such a day. A
short breakfast of Pop Tarts and we were
cruising north with a constant playlist
of music blaring from Cat Stevens and
Bruce Springsteen to Lady GaGa and
Avicci.

After an entertaining 5 -hour drive, we
arrived to our landing spot on the Spednic
Lake via Castle Road. We unloaded our
canoes and gear, had a refreshing lunch
of cold cut sandwiches along with a side
of Lorna Doones and then finally got
on the water. After a short canoe clinic
on proper paddling and explaining the
different canoe strokes (Front row, C-
Stroke, J-Stroke and Draw), we paddled
a short way to Birch Island where we set
up our tarp, tents and all of our gear.

After a short game of Sniper, everyone
in the cabin proceeded to go swimming
right off of our campsite. We enjoyed
ourselves on the water, playing King of
the Rock and attempting to hear some
of our epic 'ECHOES'. A group of guys
attempted to swim to Canada, led by the
fair skinned Irishmen Mr. Jack Gallagher.
Attempt failed but another chance would
happen, having Canada to our left bank
of the river for the next five days.

After a light snack, Javi and Julio
Baigorri began what would become their
on-going hobby, or perhaps obsession,
throughout their trip: fire building. As
the Miami boys and others gathered
wood and kindling. Drew Lincoln (HBC)
began preparing dinner. Others sat by
the fire and read or wrote. Counselor
Henry Arcano offered his astronomical
and philosophical expertise to both
Emmet McNamara and Spencer Sapir
who all engaged in a long conversation
concerning Galileo, the atom, gravity and
the final frontier, a.k.a. SPACE.

To decide who would eat first, each

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tent group acted out a skit performing the
'greatest moment in American history'.
Skits ranged everywhere from the birth
of each of the counselors to the invention
of bacon. The winners, however, were
Spencer Sapir, Aiden Tierney and Spence
Robbins who beautifully reenacted the
moment of when Francis Scott Key wrote
the 'Star Spangled Banner' as a prisoner
of war during the War of 1812 in the
harbor of Baltimore. Dinner was bacon
cheeseburgers with a bonus dessert of
Snickers for America's birthday. We
enjoyed our Snickers on the rocks by the
water, watching an incredible alpenglow
sunset and singing both the 'Kieve Hymn'
and the 'Star Spangled Banner'. After
dessert, we brushed our teeth, got in
our tents and climbed into our sleeping
bags.

After a 5 a.m. wake up, 5-hour drive
north and a short hour and half paddle
on the water, we had finally made it into
the wilderness. We lay our heads down
early that night, ready for our first full
day.

Day Two:

Finally our first day on the water! The
sun greeted us yet again with a scorching
hot day. We awoke around 7 a.m. and
had a quick breakfast of oatmeal to be
on our way and onto the lake and to the
next campsite. We got on the lake around
9 and got used to our partners and the
basics of being a bowman and stern man
in a canoe. The theme for the day: DRINK
WATER and WEAR SUNSCREEN!
Our paddle was relatively short to the
Narrows campsite. We arrived at the
campsite around 1 when we had a late
lunch of PB & Js on pita bread with a
snack of Cheez-Its.

We set up camp at Todd's Island which
was an incredible campsite. It was a very
narrow island, awesome swimming area,
great tent spots and a prime place to
play the game Sniper, which we would
continually play. We also began playing
the card game 'President' on which we
quickly became hooked for the entire
trip. A lounge afternoon went by quickly
as the guys either played Sniper, went
swimming, read, took naps or played
card games.

For dinner we created a Mexican Fiesta

which consisted of grilled chicken,
Mexican rice, shredded cheese and salsa
all wrapped in a tortilla wrap. After
dinner we had a nice evening swim then
a story telling game called 'Big Fish' that
counselor Henry Arcano introduced to us.
After a series of ridiculously imaginative
and creative life stories for each other,
we got to bed early. Tomorrow would be
our most challenging and longest day on
the trip yet.
Day Three:

A 5:30 a.m. wake-up, the boys of North
Cunningham quickly got their gear all
packed up, ate Pop Tarts for breakfast
and were on the water by 7 a.m. We left
the Narrows and paddled a short distance
around the peninsula on Spednic Lake to
the small town of Vanceboro where we
stopped at the dam. We quickly portaged
around the dam to finally get onto some
moving water and the St. Croix River
Waterway. After a quick lunch of cold
cuts, snack of Oreos and some chips from
the Vanceboro store, we were off on our
first time on moving water and what do
we hit first. RAPIDS! No better way to
learn than trying them right away.

We survived our first leg of rapids
and enjoyed some moving water and
beautiful weather as we tested our rapid
clinic with a few short bursts of Class lis
along the way. We eventually made it
to our biggest challenge of the day, and
the trip: Little Falls. We portaged our
gear around and checked out the falls
from the side, deciding which way to go
down. Counselor Pierce Leonard and his
bowman. Emmet McNamara led the way,
making a flawless entry and surviving
the falls without flipping. In fact, every
canoe made it down perfectly except for
Henry Kenney and Javi Baigorri who took
a fall early on and actually luckily got to
swim down the rapids and made their
experience that much more enjoyable,
according to both of them. Little Falls
was easily the highlight of the trip and
the some of the biggest white water we
got to the entire time.

We loaded our canoes up again and
swam around the falls for a bit. We
quickly noticed, however, how many
people were coming down the river and
how the potential of grabbing a good

144

campsite that was relatively close was
becoming slim. We quickly loaded our
canoes up and got back on the river to
hope that the campsite around the river's
bend was unoccupied. We raced to the
campsite and were lucky enough to find
no one there. Phew!

We set up camp and finally relaxed.
We made a delicious pasta alfredo and
stuffed our faces to get to bed. Our longest
day of the trip and I was impressed by
how well we had accomplished the day.
After a short day 2 which seemed to be
more challenging than expected, I was
unsure of how we would all do on Day 3;
however, this group of guys really proved
to me how they mentally and physically
matured.
Day Four:

After a long and exhausting Day 3,
we slept in a bit and woke up around
7:30. As the boys put away camp and
got the boats ready. Pierce Leonard and
Drew Lincoln made bacon and eggs for
breakfast. After breakfast we were back
on the river, with moving water and a
chance to hit some more rapids. We hit
the Cedar Island Rips, Pork Rips, Split
Rock Rips and Meetinghouse Rips before
hitting some dead water where we saw
some awesome terrain of marsh and
islands.

This was also an opportunity to see
wildlife. Emmet McNamara and Will
Earley spotted 5 different bald eagles! We
then made it Loon Bay where we were
able to get to before lunchtime. We set up
camp and immediately went for a long
swim, others trying again to touch Canada
on the other side of the river. Some other
guys proved their dominance on the card
playing with Spencer Sapir and Henry
Kenney leading the way with 'President'
while Victor Rego, Jack Copeland and
the Baigorri twins dominated Egyptian
Rats Screw. We had a lazy afternoon
until a small thunderstorm hit, so we all
gathered inside our tents and continued
our card games. Another great swim, we
had some epic games of Sniper to follow
then spicy chicken patties for dinner.
Dinner followed by an another incredible
fire built by the Baigorri brothers. We
all went to bed early again after a crazy
alpenglow sunset on the river.
Day Five:

Our last full day of the trip, we left the
Loon Bay campsite quickly after an easy
breakfast of cereal bars. Another beautiful
day on the water, we unexpectedly hit
one of the most challenging set of rapids
after Little Falls of the entire trip. A Class
III rapid, Canoose Ledges, would become
the highlight of the day for us. We
spotted the rapids before we hit them but
decided to go for it rather than portage.
No one had any trouble going down the
series of rapids and proved to be yet
another obstacle we would crush.

We had some more still water around
islands and marshes where Julio Baiggori
and Henry Kenney hilariously had some
trouble directing themselves in a straight
line and went into several banks but

145

eventually made their way through.
We passed by the Clark's Point Nature
Preserve, hit the Kendricks Rips and
made it the Egg Point Island where we
got in before lunch yet again.

At the campsite, we set up everything
and had an incredible time playing Sniper
and swimming. Victor Rego, Spence
Robbins and Finn Johnston attempted
to swim up the river a bit and down the
small rapids. After a nice swim and yet
again game of Sniper, we began to make
Boboli pizzas over the fire which yet
again the Baigorri boys, Jack Copeland
and Will Earley built and created. As we
enjoyed our pizzas. Drew Brigham came
across a gigantic snapping turtle that
was swimming around the exact same
spot we had just been swimming. We
stayed away but enjoyed his company as
the boys eventually named him 'Herbie'
as he hung by the riverbank where we
spent the rest of our night. After some
awesome personal pizzas, we enjoyed
some Hershey chocolate bars and sat by
the fire, reminiscing the trip and talking
about our favorite parts of the trip. We
were off to bed with a bittersweet feeling.
Ready to get back to camp but as Will
Earley put it 'I feel like we just started
the trip!'
Day Six:

Today was our final day of the trip and
we chose to take advantage of the great
campsite. Pierce Leonard made some
incredible M&M pancakes for breakfast
as we took our time during the morning.
We eventually got on the river by 10
a.m. when we made the short paddle to
the Grand Falls Dam where we waited
for our pickup by "The One". Right on
schedule, "The One" picked us up and
we stopped for a late lunch at Happy
China buffet which all the boys were
very excited about. We made a nice
entrance into camp during the evening
activity and made our official entrance
the next morning at breakfast doing
a rendition of 'Have You Heard?' (an
ongoing joke throughout the trip). An
overall successful and flawless trip, the
boys of North Cunningham became men
in less than a week.

South Harris
Lake Damariscotta
Ned Beckwith, HBC

Day 1, June 27-

"It's raining sideways" - Sam Nassif

With the rain pounding on our
windows, we awoke with the knowledge
that today was the day to depart for our
adventure across the lake. While most
cabins would immediately inundate their
HBC with questions resembling "Do we
really have to go?" and "Can we just wait
for it to stop raining", the only question
I received from my boys was "Can we
leave yet?" We silently walked in a single
file line from the cabin down to the Buck
Porch, where Reid greeted us with a
simple, yet proud and confident, nod
of the head. When everybody had their
river duffle on their back and a piece of
group gear in their arms, we reformed the
single file line and marched down to the
waterfront, while impressed and amazed
observers pointing at us from inside the
warm and dry indoors.

With stone cold silence and
determination, we loaded tents and
wannigans into Old Town canoes. All
the while, the cooler that carried all the
meats and cheeses for the trip rested
quietly in the trip shack freezer. After
briefly complaining about the assigned
canoe partnerships, we set sail through
borderline lethal bullets of rain.

The cabin quickly experienced a
revelation that they were about as
drenched as they could ever be, and
at that point frankly stopped caring
about everything. As a group we started
howling, chanting and singing tribal
songs. Quentin Abramo decided it
would be funny to try and race Ned,
and his relentless taunting was certainly
not appreciated. We explored multiple
islands, ate lunch, and then continued
paddling. Eventually our campsite
appeared through the fog, and we pulled
our canoes up onto shore. With a distinct
sense of urgency, we set up five tents and
one tarp.

Charlie Cowen-Breen and James
Magargee led the charge of exploring
the massive island, while J.P. and
Ned unwillingly got a full tour of

146

Lake Damariscotta. When it was time
for dinner, the boys devoured bacon
cheeseburgers which were one part meat/
cheese and two parts Worcestershire
sauce. Due to the fact that every piece
of wood within a 1,000 yard radius was
soaking wet, we roasted marshmallows
over our trusty Coleman stove and
pretended it was anything like the real
thing. With full tummies and damp pant
legs, everybody set off to the tents and
abruptly fell asleep.
Day 2, June 28-

"Hope doesn't come from calculating
whether the good news is winning out
over the bad. It's simply a choice to take
action." - Anna Lappe, O Magazine, June
2003

If you're into nonstop rain. Pop Tarts
and using flimsy sticks as tent stakes,
then 1.) We have three things in common,
and 2.) You should have canoed over to
Southover campground on June 28th.
The boys unzipped their tent doors to the
sight of more dreadful weather on Day 2,
but could not have cared any less. We
threw the Frisbee, ate breakfast and swept
the campsite clean of any possible trace
before hopping back into our canoes.

We had a leisurely paddle back to
Kieve, checking out some neighboring
islands in the process. When our canoes
graced the shores of the notorious
Kieve waterfront "beach," the boys
got mentally prepared to portage the
boats to the even more notorious Kieve
"leech field." This was the first time
many of the boys had put a canoe over
their head, and I was shedding tears of
pride in the background while the boys
rallied around the challenge. Chris Yates
in particular showed enthusiasm for the
brief but steep portage. All in all, while
Mother Nature tried her very hardest
to make it otherwise, the trip ended up
being a success on many levels.

South Harris
Baxter State Park
Ned Beckwith, HBC

Day 1, July 2-

Sometimes when one awakes, it
takes a few seconds to remember why
a particular day is different and unique

from most other days. When I awakened
on July the second, it took me less than
a second to identify the tingly sensation
surging through my body. Today was the
day the fourteen boys of South Harris,
Ed and J.P., and myself got to embark
on a six-day/five-night adventure to the
209,000 plus acres Percival Baxter once
set aside so that the true appreciators of
the wilderness could have a set aside
area in which to explore and frolic. The
boys all got up on July the second with a
sense of excitement yet focus.

After receiving our peaces and bowls
of hair grease, we were finally ready to
hit the road for the 5-hourish trek up to
Baxter. After gauging the ambiance of
several different locations, we settled on
the Wal-Mart parking lot as a location
in which to eat our peanut butter and
jelly sandwiches. Tommy Forloni was
especially dismayed with the lack of
seconds, but thankfully was able to
shake this frustration. The post Wal-Mart
section of the road trip was by far the
most fun, as the music got louder and the
enthusiasm hit its zenith. Unfortunately,
we had to turn the music way down and
drive at a snail's pace once we crossed
through the gate of Baxter State Park.

During dinner, Henry Scott served as
the official judge of my steak and cheese
sandwiches because of his residence in
the greater Philadelphia area. I'm proud
to report that he gave my cooking a good
old fashioned two thumbs up. After
dinner I explained to the boys that the
first morning I wake up to a clear, blue sky
day, I would decide to go for Katahdin.
With this nervous/excited feeling and
full stomachs, we all meandered back to
our tents at a reasonable hour.
Day 2, July 3-

My alarm went off very early and I
unzipped my tent on the morning of
July 3rd to dark and cloudy skies. With
this development I decided that July 3rd
would not be the big day, and dozed back
off for another hour or so.

The boys all stumbled out of their
tents at their own pace, and the smell of
bacon/Worcestershire sauce lured some
out faster than others. James Pokorny's
reliably loud and clear voice questioned
"bacon?" from the inside of his tent right

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around 7:45 AM. After we all ate one
bacon, egg, cheese and Worcestershire
sauce sandwich on an English muffin,
I informed the group that we would
be hiking Mount Katahdin's meager,
unathletic little brother today. Mount
OJI (oh-jay-I). We all got on our favorite/
cutest hiking outfits, and walked
about 100 yards from our campsite
to the trailhead for Mount OJI. What
started as a nice relaxing and relatively
undemanding hike, quickly did a 180
on us and before we knew it we found
ourselves essentially scaling a 90 degree
rock face. 1 was reminded of the motion
picture Vertical Limit, but the boys were
not intimidated and we kept gaining
elevation until we found a nice plateau
on which to eat lunch.

Hayes Zierden and Nick "Nicky P"
Picchione were particularly excited
about the pep and cheese lunch spread.
We all soaked in the amazing view as
we took bites of pepperoni and then
bites of cheese. On the way down, Chris
Yates kept us all entertained with his
remarkable knowledge and memorization
of the periodic table. We ate chicken,
bacon, ranch sandwiches, told a few
scary stories, and then retreated back to
our tents at an early hour again, with the
same uneasy yet excited sentiment that
Katahdin could be upon us.
Day 3, July 4-

Sometimes a man awakes and it
takes no time at all to identify why that
particular day is different from most
other days. I awoke early again and
immediately could feel and see the sun
shining into my Marmot 6000 double
shelled dual rain fly tent. I popped up
and out of my sleeping bag and unzipped
the tent to pure weather perfection. A
nice breeze greeted my face as I breathed
in the crisp morning air. Today was the
big day. Nothing could stop me after I
made that decision, and I woke up Ed
and J.P. on my way out of the tent.

After retrieving a quick meal of Pop
Tarts from one of the wannigans, I woke
up the boys and told them the good
news: today we take on Katahdin. Nick
Huber let out a cry of excitement and his
enthusiasm quickly became contagious.
We crushed our Pop Tarts, packed our

rain jackets, sunscreen, and water bottles
into our day packs, and then packed into
the van. The trail I had chosen to lead us
up was a short drive down the road, and
is called the Abol Trail.

Greg, a Baxter Stake Park ranger,
observed our group, approached and
pulled me aside to inform me that Abol
Trail is "not for everyone", and to not
feel any pressure to continue if any of us
were struggling. I gave Greg (if that is his
real name) a pat on the shoulder, looked
him in the eye and told him that he had
nothing to worry about. We were on a
mission to get seventeen men to the sign
that says Katahdin, and no fewer. Thus,
we began to walk. And we walked. We
walked some more. We gained a lot of
elevation. There was some blood, there
was a lot of sweat, and there were more
tears than blood and sweat combined.
There were also snacks, photo op breaks,
and games played to pass the time.

Henry Scott wanted to hike far faster
than the pace I was setting, so instead
of slowing down, Henry would stop
all together, wait until I got a ways up
ahead, and then go into "spider monkey
mode" in which he would race up the
boulders that we were ascending and pass
everybody with ease. Truly remarkable
and slightly bizarre stuff. Meanwhile,
Quentin Abramo and Yluiz stayed on my
heels and kept me company. Blood sweat
and tears aside, all 14 campers and all 3
counselors made it to the Baxter Peak of
Mount Katahdin, which stands at 5,432
feet. This was a moment of immense
pride, and I remembered how, when I
hiked the mountain as a camper, one of
the counselors had to take a small group
of campers back down who had refused
to go any further. We were all on top of
the mountain, and we all ate sandwiches
and took pictures before beginning the
trek down.

It was 10 hours of hiking when all
things were said and done. Great day and
one I will remember for quite some time,
and I expect the boys to as well.
Day 4, July 5-

After we all slept like rocks, the
morning of Day 4 was slower and more
relaxed. I made some pancakes and we
all ate and relaxed until about 11 AM. At

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that one point, I told the boys to put on
their bathing suits because we would be
going to check out Ledge Falls, otherwise
known as the "natural water slides."
Everyone was excited after hearing
the term 'water slides' and quickly got
changed and packed their day packs.
We made the drive to Ledge Falls and
didn't wait to hop in the water on this
especially warm day. The water was high
and a perfect temperature, and a blast
was had by everyone while sliding down
the smooth rocks and crashing into the
small body of water below.

We enjoyed my all-time favorite
lunch of grilled cheese sandwiches
and tomato soup, and then kept sliding
and sliding. After the physically and
mentally rigorous day the day before,
it felt great to unwind and relax a little
bit. Will Magargee and Sam Nassif were
particularly enthusiastic about the water
slides and I had to pry them away from
taking "one last run."

For dinner, after the Coleman stove just
didn't want to work for me, we boiled a
pot of water over the open fire, and made
pesto pasta. Seconds and thirds were
enjoyed by all, and after a few more ghost
stories (some made up on the spot), we
retreated to our tents under a clear and
starry sky.

Day 5, July 6- Kieve Bacon Games 2013

When I unzipped my tent door on
day five, I almost couldn't believe that
we were lucky enough to enjoy another
clear sunny day. Getting a good day for
Katahdin already made us a lucky group,
but now it was just getting out of hand.
Much to many of the boys' chagrin, I
announced that we would be going for
one last hike today: a smaller mountain
over by Kidney Pond called Sentinel
Mountain. The Kieve Bacon Games of
2013 then took place, and then we drove
to the trailhead and started scaling our
third mountain of the trip.

Charlie Cowen-Breen walked up in
front with me and kept me company
with some interesting stories as we
walked on and on. Not before too long,
we were looking at another wooden sign
that signified the peak of a mountain, and
on the way back down, 1 gave in to the
demands to return to the natural water

slides to cool off. Turns out we weren't
alone with this idea, and we ran into the
Bank II cabin as well as a Wavus cabin.
Despite the crowd, the waterslides proved
to be just as fun if not more so than the
first time, and we enjoyed another pep
and cheese lunch on the warm rocks off
to the side.

Dinner that night was an absolute
feast, as we had to finish the rest of the
food. We set up a pizza bar that included
pepperoni, peppers and onions and
other veggies and then grilled our pizzas
over the fire. After filling up, some of the
boys chose to socialize with our Wavus
neighbors, while others simply chose to
hang out by the fire with the counselors.
To each his own. Great day and great last
night.

Day 6, July 7-

Today we woke up and packed up
all our tents and other gear in a timely
manner because we had a check-out
time from our campsite. After hitting the
road, the guesses about where we would
be stopping for lunch quickly popped up
from all over the van, but the counselors
kept a pretty good poker face. Eventually
we turned into "Maine's best deli" Big
G's, and all devoured sandwiches and
chicken baskets. We returned to camp
with full stomachs, smelly clothing
and big smiles, and seamlessly joined
back into the Kieve community. I had
an awesome time scaling mountains
and sliding down waterslides with this
group, and am extremely proud of each
and every camper.

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South Harrington
Damariscotta Lakes
HBC Tyler Hill

July 3

South Harrington pushed off around
10:30 on the morning of July 3. We
paddled southeast to check out Deep
Cove. Will Hass took the leisurely
exploratory paddle as an opportunity to
teach Ksaveck Danilowicz some of the
finer points of lake paddling. Once we
reached the end of the cove, we decided
to head north to an island with a solid
swim rock. The boys enjoyed double
chocolate Rice-Krispy treats in a myriad
of ways from attempting to swallow the
treat whole, to the crisp controlled bites
of Finn McConaughy designed to get
full enjoyment out of the bar and make
everyone jealous ten minutes later when
he was the only one with any left.

Then we swam off of the swimming
rock with Dan Schechter leading
the charge off of the rock. We were
interrupted a few minutes later when
Timmy Thompson spotted Luke Jannotta
and his boat floating away. Luckily they
were able to quickly and easily recover
it and ground it properly. Reconvening
after a relaxing dip, we paddled towards
our campsite at Southover. After setting
up the tents, we feasted on turkey and
ham sandwiches and the boys stunned
me with their disappointment at not
being able to have thirds (these growing
boy eating habits will not be overlooked
in the future). After lunch the boys sat
down to a rousing game of President
before going for a quick dip in the lake.
Thomas Dixon cooked us a delicious
dinner of chicken bacon ranch before
we lit a fire, thanks to the expert wood
collecting of Eli Mundy and Chris
Bassett.
July 4

The next day we awoke around nine
and enjoyed delicious bacon, egg and
cheeses prepped by Wes Dixon. We then
set off to check out a rope swing on the
other side of the lake. Will Borda and
Declan McCarthy exhibited spectacular
paddling and finished near the front
of the pack as we returned to Kieve at
around 4:30.

South Harrington
Baxter State Park
HBC: Tyler Hill
JC's: Jake Rockefeller

Harrison Thompson

Day 1:

The boys of South Harrington arose
for flag at 8:30 and enjoyed a traditional
Kieve breakfast at which we announced
our departure simply saying that South
Harrington would be departing for Baxter
and the resulting trip would be "Legend-
wait for it..." and then we departed.

On the drive up we stopped halfway
and ate cold cut sandwiches and enjoyed
Mug root beers, a last taste of civilization
before departing for the rugged outdoors
of Governor Baxter's pride and joy . Ksavek
Danilowicz enjoyed his sandwich with
his soon-to-be customary seven squirts
of brown mustard. Upon arrival we set
up camp and Declan McCarthy and Will
Hass created an improvised Frisbee Golf
Course. We ate a lavish dinner of BBQ
chicken and rice cooked by Chef Thomas
Dixon before calling ii an early night in
preparation for summiting Katahdin the
next day.
Day 2:

We awoke bright and early at 5 to more
than a few groggy heads and requests for
Pop-Tarts instead of the pre-planned
oatmeal. The boys seemed craving a
challenge so we opted to take one of the
more difficult paths up the mountain,
Cathedral. This hike required a fair
amount of half-climbing, half-hiking, but
the boys seemed to relish the challenge.
If not for the biting gnats, this portion of
the trip would have been my favorite.
Nonetheless Dan Schechter thoroughly
enjoyed the scrambling and scraping
up the mountain, though, if he had a
choice, I think he would have preferred
to do only the rock climbing portion and
avoid the hiking. Once we summited
Baxter Peak, the boys drank in the
gorgeous view and gobbled strawberry
Cheerio bars. The boys then opted to
take the hard way, across the 1.1 mile
spine of the mountain, known as Knife's
Edge. During this harrowing journey,
Eli Mundy decided to see how far his
ankle would turn against a rock and Wes

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Dixon tried to elbow drop the mountain
(you should see the other guy), but both
pushed through the injuries, leading the
group for much of the hike's remainder.
Once we completed the hike, we feasted
on dinner and second dinner, with tuna
to tide us over until the delicious Phillie
Cheese Steaks were prepped. The boys
went to sleep with dreams of great vistas
and huge mountains.
Day 3:

Bacon egg and cheeses greeted the
hungry bellies of the South Harrington
boys on day three of the trip.

We took the day very easy and used
it as an opportunity to strengthen the
cabin group, and rest the boys' weary
legs. The boys played Manhunt, and
plotted elaborate Sponge Bob skits to
decide who would eat first. Additionally
the boys were asked to assemble the
best cooking tarp they could possibly
assemble using 100 ft. of clothes line, a
large brown tarp and 6 ft. of duck tape.
The solution was elegant and simple
though it took a long time in the crafting
and had Finn McConaughy and Jack Hall
scrambling up posts and trees to secure
the rope higher. After setting up the tarp
and a brief sprinkling, the boys cooked
delicious bacon cheeseburgers and went
to bed early, prepared for another big
hike up Mt. Coe the next day.
Day 4:

We woke up early and boiled water for
oatmeal to give the boys the strength and
energy to climb Mt. Coe. The boys hiked
hard in the morning right up the side of
the mountain and enjoyed a beautiful
view as we ate our lunches, with music
trivia deciding who would eat first. We
descended the mountain and headed
to a triplet of natural water slides near
the base. We enjoyed Chocolate Rice
Krispie Bars while we watched the
water flow and then played in the slides
for a while before driving back to the
campsite for dinner. While at the slides
Luke Janotta managed his first loon call
and was ecstatic. Chris Bassett crafted
excellent CBRs (chicken bacon ranch)
and managed to avoid crusting ranch
dressing onto the pan (always difficult).
After dinner the boys stayed up late and
enjoyed the beautiful Maine stars and

even a bit of the Milky Way (the galaxy,
not the candy bar much to many of the
boys' slight disappointment). Timmy
Thompson and Will Borda were able to
locate the North Star though their search
for Orion was fruitless (owing to the fact
that it is a winter constellation).
Day 5:

We awoke to the trip's second round of
Pop-Tarts and headed off to what turned
out to be the kids' favorite day of the
trip. Pulling into the trailhead we met a
man who was a day from finishing his
second through hike. We then began our
hike to see Big Niagara and Little Niagara
Falls. We took a break at Big Niagara to
play in the falls and gaze at the awesome
power of the water before lunch after a
quick nap/game of cards (depending on
the person) we headed another 2-3 miles
further downstream to a huge natural
water slide. All of the boys loved the
water slides and it was hard to tear them
away from the slides, but we were finally
able to convince them that they might
want to eat dinner at some point.

On the drive back to the campsite as
if to cap off an already perfect day, we
saw a moose hanging out in one of the
ponds. For dinner I challenged the boys
to finish an entire pot of Dank, (a feat all
of the counselors claimed inconceivable).
The boys finished the whole thing even
scraping the bottom of the pot clean, and
then went on to finish nearly 4 bags of
marshmallows, a case of chocolate bars
and 10 packets of graham crackers in the
great S'More genocide of 2013.
Day 6:

The boys woke up early and had all
of the preparations for M&M pancakes
laying in wait for me when I awoke
and the majority of the group gear
already packed up with their tents taken
down and stowed away. I cooked more
pancakes then they could stomach after
their Kobiyashi-esque feat the morning
before, but they all ate healthy servings
of the scrambled M&M pancakes and
piled into the van for the drive back to
camp, bidding Baxter State Park a fond
farewell. We stopped at Big G's Deli for
lunch and drove back in time to announce
our entrance "...dary" at dinner.

North Harris
Tumbledown Mountain
Tucker Callanan, HBC

Just two days into camp the boys
of North Harris set off on their first
adventure. We gathered our things,
packed our bags, and said, "peace and
a bowl of hair grease" to all the rest of
the campers and counselors that we had
just reconnected with. With myself at the
wheel and co-counselor Henry Wagner
(Wags) at my side DJ-ing, we had an easy
two-hour drive up to Mount Blue State
Park. We could tell the campers had been
going hard and having fun the first two
days of camp due to the fact nearly all of
them fell asleep during the car ride.

Upon arrival, the campers were re-
taught how to set up and take down tents
with their newly-formed tent groups.
They collected as much dry firewood as
possible as the counselors set up a make-
shift tent using the trailer and tarp and
made lunch. After eating our share of
turkey and cheese sandwiches, the boys
gathered their water bottles and raincoats
and piled back into the van.

We drove roughly 10 miles after many
turnarounds (seems Northern Maine
thinks road signs are overrated) to the
base of Mount Blue. The trail was steep
and many breaks were needed to catch
our breath. Halfway through the hike
most of the cabin was convinced that
this hike was harder then the Mount
Washington hike. Their hard work paid
off, however, when we reached the top
about an hour later and enjoyed a cool
breeze and snack attack at the top. For
those who are curious, a snack attack
consists of the counselors attacking the
campers in a fun way with snacks, in this
case Ritz-Bitz sandwiches. After hanging
out at the top and snapping some quality
pics, we began the treacherous journey
back down. Because of the rainy weather
the hike down was extremely slippery
and was needed to be done at a snail's
pace.

Upon returning to camp the campers
were given the prompt for the skits that
decided who received the first helpings of
dinner that night. As they broke off into
their tent groups and started planning

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their skits, we grilled up some delicious
double bacon barbeque burgers, which
were, as Alden put it, "the best looking
and tasting burger I've ever had. " The first
burgers were given to Jeremy and his tent
for accurately and hilariously portraying
what we three counselors do on our days
off of camp. Dinner was followed by a
campfire, where stories were told and a
few games of Mafia were played.

We awoke the next morning to one
of the largest storms I have been a part
of while camping. Water was dumping
down so hard you could barely see ten
feet ahead of you. This created a problem
for our scheduled hike of Mount Blue.
After discussing it with the park rangers,
and learning the rain was supposed
to continue along with thunderstorms
around lunch, we decided the only
option was to hunker down and wait
out the storm. After cooking breakfast
sandwiches for the campers, we found
a cool shelter with a fireplace near the
campground's lake, a short walk from
our campsite.

We brought lunch, water bottles and
all of the card games and board games
we had, and spent the morning hanging
out and playing games next to the fire.
After a lunch of peanut butter and jelly
sandwiches, a few brave souls took a
quick dip in the lake, sprinting back to
warm up by the fire afterwards. As the
afternoon progressed, the sky became
lighter and lighter and the rain began
to let up. As soon as it had stopped, we
packed the guys up from our shelter and
prepared them for a quick hike.

With water bottles in hand and
raincoats on, we headed up to Blueberry
Mountain, a climb recommended by the
ranger due to the fact it was a short hike
with great views. Our only instructions
were to drive up the road until Blueberry
Bible Camp, and that they would help
us find the trail head from there. As we
arrived at the camp, we were greeted by
the director of the camp who stated "they
were leaving for a few hours so can't take
us up the path, but we were welcome to
use their guide dog". I was confused at
first but the director opened up the door
to her house and out ran a three-year-old
chocolate lab, bursting with energy. "She

knows the trail by heart, the director said.
She'll bark at you if you go off the trail".
The director's only requests were that
we put her back in the house when we
were done, and that we didn't take her
home with us. The dog was irresistibly
cute and extremely smart, too. True to
her word, she led us all the way up to
the peak, knowing the mountain better
then 1 believed possible. At the top of the
mountain, we enjoyed snacks with our
new furry friend Shila. Much like the day
before, the trip down was slippery but
Shila showed us the best way down and
we made it back without getting too wet
or scraped up. Once we made it down
the mountain, Shila got a hold of Max's
hat and we spent 5 hilarious minutes
chasing her around the field. When we
finally realized no one was fast enough to
catch her, we used our smarts and started
herding her and cutting down corners
until we finally caught her and retrieved
the hat. It was a great turnaround from
a previously laid back, relaxed day. The
hardest part being saying goodbye to our
trail guide as we got back into the van
and headed back to our campsite.

Upon arrival, the campers prepared
their dinner skits, the prompt being the
best 30-second promotional video for
Kieve. The winners of the skit got to enjoy
the first Philly cheese steak sandwiches
with onions and peppers. The aroma from
the sizzling meat and veggies smelted so
good that even one of the camp rangers
wandered over and graciously accepted
a sandwich. Rain continued to come and
go, making a campfire impossible that
night so the campers spent the rest of
the evening hanging out in the shelter of
their tents.

We awoke early the next morning in
hopes of climbing Mount Blue. However,
once again the amount of rain coming
down made it impossible. So, we took our
time taking down our tents and packing
up, said goodbye and thank you to the
park rangers and hit the road. Because
we had time to spare, we were able to go
a little out of the way on the trip back
and stop at Big G's, Maine's biggest and
best sandwich shop. And when I say
biggest I don't mean the building. Every
item sold at Big G's is supersized, the

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155

biggest cookies and sandwiches I have
ever seen. Every camper ordered half of
a sandwich, and less then half of them
were able to even finish that. The most
baffling thing was watching Matthew eat;
I've never seen anything like it. As even
the counselors could barely finish half,
Matthew ate more then a full sandwich.
As the kids piled back into the van and
fell asleep due to food coma, they were
happily woken up for a quick stop to
Round Top for a small ice cream right
before arriving back at camp. A real
cherry on top of a great primer trip.

North Harris Trip Report

Moose River

Tucker Callanan, HBC

Day 1, July 2:

The boys of North Harris woke up
promptly at 4:45 a.m. Tuesday morning
ready to take on the mighty Moose
River. We moved our previously-packed
bags down to Pasquaney and enjoyed a
breakfast of scrambled eggs and bacon as
we waited for our driver, the famous Bob
Linker. We packed our bags into the bus
in the pouring rain without the slightest
clue of the adventures we were about to
have.

Almost immediately after climbing on
the bus, the whole cabin fell asleep for
most of the 3-hour bus ride. A quick stop
was made to Wal-Mart to pick up bug
dope after hearing the tales of the swarms
of bugs we were soon to face. Because
of all the rain, we were unable to put
in at the normal spot so were dropped
off downstream in a marshy parking lot.
After saying goodbye to our driver Bob
we packed up our canoes and began the
first leg of our journey.

Still rainy out, we battled through the
wind and mist until we stopped half way
across the lake for lunch. After a quick
lunch of turkey and cheese sandwiches,
we continued to the end of the pond and
prepared ourselves for the first portage.
This portage in particular is notorious
at Kieve for being pound-for-pound the
hardest portage a camper will complete.
This is because we do it on the first day
of the trip, which means all of our coolers
and wannigans are full and the trail is a

staggering 1.2 miles long. After camping,
the campers were up and with Jebb and
Peter trying their hand at soloing canoes,
we started the long hike through the
portage trail to our campsite. The journey
was tough and required multiple trips,
but at the end of the day I couldn't have
been more proud of the boys.

One moment in particular stood out as
a sign that the cabin was really coming
together. After 4 hours of portaging,
with all the gear at the site, we handed
out Snickers bars to congratulate each
camper for his hard work. It was at that
point that we realized two campers were
still back on the trail bringing the last
cooler. When I asked if anyone wanted
to go back to help, the whole cabin got
up and all went back to help their fellow
cabin mates, a truly awesome thing to
see.

The end of the portage was also our
campsite so right after we were done,
we set up our tents then feasted on
barbeque bacon burgers. The campsite
could not have been better. Looking out
over the lake there was a huge rock that
we counselors set up our tents on and
claimed "counsely rock". The site was
huge, with plenty other quality tents
sites and we enjoyed an early bedtime
after dinner due to the long day we had.
Day 2, July 3:

Each camper woke up the next day to
a package of Pop Tarts for breakfast. We
quickly packed up our tents, swept the
campsite for trash, and piled into our
canoes ready to take on another day of
lake paddling.

About a mile away from our campsite,
we came upon a huge rock in the middle
of the lake. With the sun just breaking
through the clouds for the first time on
our trip, we decided a little break and
sunbathing was in order. The rock ended
up being great to jump off of, so we swam
and jumped off of it until lunchtime.
After eating the Kieve classic "pep and
cheese" for lunch, we had our last jumps
off of the rock and hopped back into our
canoes.

We paddled the rest of the lake in a
timely fashion and finally made it to the
entrance of the Moose River. The river
is completely natural, meaning it is not

156

regulated by dams so it can be a bit slow
at times. So, we enjoyed the sun as we
slowly made it down the marshy river to
our second campsite.

When we arrived at the campsite, we
finally saw first hand that the legends
of the bugs were true. Each camper
immediately put on bug spray after getting
out of his boat, yet still were viciously
attacked by mosquitoes. Saying that
around 40 mosquitoes surrounded each
camper at all times, even with bug spray
on would not be an exaggeration. They
would hover about a foot away from you,
constantly searching for the one area you
forgot to put bug spray on.

After a quick dinner of chicken bacon
ranch sandwiches everyone went right
into their tents to escape the bloodthirsty
insects. As the sun set, you could
actually hear what sounded like a siren
throughout the woods, the accumulation
of all the buzzing of the bugs coming
together. A truly terrifying sound.
Day 3 -The 4th of July!

We packed up our tents as quickly
as we could the next morning in order
to escape the bugs. The minutes felt
like hours getting out of the campsite
as you grew increasingly frustrated and
aggravated with each bug bite. After
finally escaping, everyone breathed a
sigh of relief and continued to paddle
down the beautiful Moose River.

It being another slow day of paddling,
each camper was taught how to "Gash
Paddle", a technique they will perfect
next year on their trip. After a few hours
of moseying our way down the river,
we came upon our second, and final,
portage of our trip, once again with our
campsite at the end of the trail. After
the experience of the grueling 1.2 mile
portage we had crushed the day before,
this portage was a piece of cake and took
under an hour. The campsite we arrived
at was, in my opinion, the coolest one
of the trip and looked out over the set of
rapids that we had portaged around.

The rapids looked so cool that we
counselors could not resist but to try
running them, which turned out to not
be the smartest idea. As all the campers
gathered on the shore to watch, my
fellow counselor Will and I tried to

shoot through the biggest part of the
rapids. With big drops and huge waves
our boat quickly filled with water until
it was too heavy and we flipped, right
in front of the campers. The campers
enjoyed a good laugh and the counselors
some good scars, but we brushed it off
and all went swimming after the small
show. After swimming in the rapids, the
campers all performed skits about where
they thought the counselors would be in
20 years, the winners receiving chicken
fajitas first.

After cleaning up, we all grabbed our
water bottles and went on a quick hike
up to a huge waterfall that was just off
of the portage trail we took earlier that
day. As we sat at the base of Holeb
Falls, a 40-foot waterfall, we finally took
the time to sing the national anthem,
in respect to our country's birthday.
Even Thomas from France joined in
as we followed it up by the Pledge of
Allegiance. As a 4th of July treat I then
surprised the boys with a dessert that I
helped create last year called "deuce
candy". The recipe involves loading up
a tub of marshmallow fluff with M&M's,
snickers and Reeses, then giving each
camper a few sheets of graham cracker
and letting them take turns scoop out the
marshmallowy goodness. The dessert
was a big hit and we then retired to our
tents after the sugar rush had subsided.
Day 4:

The boys awoke the next morning to the
smell of bacon, the best way to wake up
in my opinion, as we prepared breakfast
sandwiches. After saying goodbye to our
sweet campsite, we were back on the
river and Gash-paddled our way towards
the end of the river.

After catching glimpse of another
camp ahead of us. Camp Winnebago, we
picked up the pace and ended up passing
the other camp on the river. We also
passed by our rival camp, Chewonki,
and continued to paddle hard after a
quick snack attack to the end of the river.
Breaking back into the open waters of
the lake (the same lake we started on
actually), we saw a storm coming at us
from across the lake so we pulled off into
a campsite to get some shelter and have
lunch. As we watched the storm pass

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through and ate our tuna sandwiches,
we did not see one of our canoes floating
away until it was too late and hilariously
Will went sprinting into the water and
swam after it.

After he successfully got it back to
shore, we faced the headwinds and rain
coming at us and paddled hard across the
lake. It turned out to be a blessing that we
passed Winnebago on the river because
we were able to grab the last campsite left
on the lake. The rain cleared up and we
all enjoyed a nice swim and a beautiful
sunset over the lake. That night we had
my favorite meal of the trip. Dank, Dank
consists of noodles, butter, Parmesan
cheese, caramelized onions and a ton of
bacon, a truly magnificent dish. The boys
ate bowl after bowl of the cheesy dish as
they watched the sunset.
Day 5:

With our last day of paddling being
our longest, we woke up the boys early
with a bowl of oatmeal. We gathered
our things quickly as it was rainy that
morning and set off.

Paddling past the site where we started,
five days earlier, we pushed through
strong headwinds across the lake and
made it back onto the Moose River. With
the headwinds gone, we enjoyed a snack
and slowly paddled through a small
town that screamed Northern Maine. We
saw two seaplanes, boats painted in red,
white, and blue as well as a campsite full
of fishermen and campers. We stopped
after the town for lunch and right above
us perched a Bald Eagle, resulting in
chants of USA! USA!

After lunch of pep and cheese we
made it to the last lake that we needed
to paddle across. The lake was three
miles long and, after the headwinds we
encountered earlier, I was expecting to
spend the next two hours paddling hard.
Luckily, the wind shifted in our favor and
was at our backs. Wags, a competitive
sailor, used our tarp to set up a sail that
connected all 8 boats together. So instead
of paddling for two hours, we enjoyed a
leisurely 45-minute sail across the lake
to our final campsite, a perfect way to
end our canoe trip.

We camped in the backyard of an
old Kieve family friend's house, the

Strasburgers. Mr. and Mrs. Strasburger
graciously let us use their dock and swim
out to their raft, which has a waterslide.
After playing King of the Raft and using
the slide, we swam back to our campsite
and ate a large helping of pasta and beef
stew. Afterwards, we were surprised by
the Strasburgers' hospitality again as
they came down from their house with
ice cream sandwiches for everyone.
Day 6:

We awoke at the Strasburgers early the
next morning and, after helping them
out with a quick project, we packed up
our things and waited for our driver
Mr. Linker to bring us to the Whitewater
rafting lodge. After saying thank you to
the Strasburgers, we piled onto the bus
for a quick ride over to the lodge.

The campers' jaws literally dropped
when we arrived. The place had it all, a
swimming pool, hot tub, basketball court,
beach volleyball court, Frolf course and
soccer field. After setting up our tents,
we had a dip in the pool, then played
basketball and soccer until exhaustion.

We then retired to the lodge to play
cards and turned on some old Jackie
Chan movies on the small TV the lodge
had. After relaxing for a bit, we went
back out to play catch and more soccer
until the dinner bell rang. We surprised
the boys by ordering a pizza buffet to the
lodge and we spent the rest of the night
eating pizza and watching Lord of the
Rings.

We headed out to our tents early and
prepared for the early wakeup that was
to come the next day in order to go white
water rafting.
Day 7:

We woke up on the last day of the
trip surprisingly bright eyed, as the
excitement of white water rafting
rekindled our spirits. After a quick
breakfast of Pop Tarts we packed up our
tents and met with our rafting guides. The
guides outlined the trip, went over safety
issues and then provided every camper a
wet suit, booties and life jacket. We split
into groups of eight and proceeded onto
the bus, grabbing a paddle and helmet on
the way. Our guides drove us to the head
of the dammed off Kennebec River and
we arrived just as the water was being

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released from the dam. Because of all the
rain, the river was running at its highest
level of the summer, 8,500 cubic feet per
second.

Our excitement built as we started
down the river and hit our first rapid.
Words cannot describe the fun we had
for the next hour crashing through waves,
laughing and screaming the whole way
down. We stopped once to visit a cool
waterfall that you could sit under and
again to grab some water and a snack.
After that the river died down a bit so we
were able to swim a set of rapids and had
fun pushing each other off the rafts into
the cold water. The guides even inflated
mini kayaks that the boys were able to
paddle around on. As we rounded the
last turn of the river, the boys were
begging us to do it again.

After finishing the rapids, the guides
then prepared for us an amazing meal of
steak, chicken and rice. As we chowed

down on our lunch, we watched a
slideshow of the pictures that the
company had taken of our day as well as
a hilarious video. Both can actually be
found online on the rafting company's
website. With our stomachs full we
climbed back onto the bus for the final
time, ending our adventure and heading
back to camp.

I cannot begin to describe how much
of a pleasure it has been to be the head
counselor of these boys. They all have
different personalities, but share the
same good character. They all got along
with each other extremely well and my
favorite part really was seeing the cabin
come together on our trip. I really felt like
we left from the camp as individuals, but
returned to camp solidified as the men of
North Harris. I can't wait to see how these
boys continue to grow and, hopefully,
I will see them all next year for Gash. I
would have them again in a heartbeat.
-Tucker

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Bank I Primer
Bigelow Mountain

Day 1—7/1

Today, Bank I departed on its primer,
heading for Round Barn Campsite in the
Bigelow Mountain Reserve. It took us
about three and a half hours before we
reached the campsite. When we arrived,
our cabin set up camp at Round Barn.
This was our first tripping experience as
a cabin, so we went through the tripping
ropes. We set up the tarp, followed by
other group gear including the tents. Our
tents were looking over the beautiful
Flagstaff Lake.

After camp was set up, we served
turkey, roast beef and cheese sandwiches
to everyone. Despite the mass amounts
of mosquitoes, the entire cabin spent the
rest of the afternoon in and out of the lake
next to our campsite. Brad also started a
cabin game of Sniper. We played a bunch
of games, but Cal and Chip led the cabin
with wins. In addition, our cabin started
a classic game of Killer that did not last
very long.

We cooked up double bacon
cheeseburgers for the kids that night.
To determine the eating order, we did a
round of counselor impressions by tent
group. Sam Saunders and James McCall
led their separate tents to first and
second place. We went to bed early with
the intention of climbing Mount Bigelow
the next morning.

Day 2- 7/2

We decided to have an 8 a.m. wake-
up due to the bad weather. It had rained
all night and was supposed to continue
to drizzle on and off throughout the day.
However, we were feeling ambitious and
couldn't wait to put our hiking skills to
the test. We cooked up sausage, egg and
cheese sandwiches on English Muffins
and walked out of the campsite for about
a half a mile before reaching the trail to
take us up Bigelow.

The hike up was steep and wet. I was
in the front. Spencer in the middle and
Brad took up the rear today. During
the first 2 miles of the 4-mile hike to
Avery Peak, we crossed many streams
and passed many fogged-in viewpoints.
However we kept our heads high. About
halfway up, we took a break and ate our
first snack. Meanwhile, Gill, Brian and
Chase climbed up a steep rock face to get
a better view of the Appalachian Trail.

The next section of the trail was a little
tougher. We had about 2.2 miles to go, but
it was nearly straight up hill. With Miles,
Brian, Cal, Sam and Daniel on my tail for
most of the way, we were navigating our
way up a trail that had started to turn into
a mini-stream. As we gained elevation
the temperature began to quickly drop
and the wind picked up. After a lot of
hard work, we reached the fog- and
mist-covered Avery Peak. The wind was
blowing so hard that we quickly stopped
at the fire tower, continued a short way

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to the summit and then immediately
turned around and began the hike down.
It still felt great to reach the top.

We ate PB&J once we descended
below the treeline to an area that was a
bit warmer. We finished the day around
4 pm and rested at the campsite for an
hour or two before cooking chicken
bacon ranch for dinner. While we
were preparing dinner, Miles and Gill
headed a joint effort to build a fire with
soaking wet wood so we could roast our
marshmallows. Also, Mac and Chip got a
big game of Frisbee toss going. After the
S 'Mores supplies were exhausted, we
decided to call it a night.
Day 3- 7/3

Today was a bit of a shorter day. After
a previously wet and tiring day, we slept
a little later and made a big meal of M&M
pancakes. This gave our cabin some
time to hang out before we left. Wallace
stood close by the kitchen telling us cool
facts about the wilderness. While Brad
flipped pancakes, we all began to take
down the campsite. Once the campsite
was all packed up and clean, our cabin
set out for Kieve around 11, with a stop
for lunch on the way.

We had a smooth car ride home and
stopped at McDonald's for a treat. Sam
was openly uncomfortable with the fact
that 16 dirty, smelly boys dressed like
they hadn't been in public for years
walked into McDonald's in a lengthy
single file line. After another hour and a
half of driving, we were happy to be back
in camp feeling prepared for our bigger
trip that was to come 6 days later.

Andy Lynch, HBC

Bank I

Baxter State Park and

the East Branch of the Penobscot

Day 1- July 9

After a day of packing and preparing.
Bank I set out on our much-anticipated
8-day trip, some of the best hiking and
canoeing that Kieve has to offer. We woke
up around 5:30 a.m. and were driving out
of camp by 6:45 that morning. Reid drove
us to the North Gate of Baxter State Park
where we dropped off canoes to Bank
II and picked up their van and trailer.

We unloaded the canoes, packed up our
new trailer, and headed into Baxter. Our
final destination was Nesowadnehunk
Field Campsite. Eager to get hiking, our
cabin stopped at Trout Brook Mountain
for our first short hike. This was about
3.3 miles round trip, but only one mile
up. Everyone did a great job on the short
but steep hike up and longer, less direct,
way down. We ate some beef jerky after
the hike as we drove another hour or so
through Baxter to Nesowadnehunk.

We were going to be living in luxury
for the next few days. Our campsite
was a well-maintained open field with
our own personal outhouse. We set up
camp and gave a quick refresher on how
to filter water, clean up after meals and
maintain the campsite.

Brad and Spencer helped me cook up
some delicious steak and cheese subs for
dinner. After dinner we had our routine
cabin gathering and listened to Chase
crack clever jokes. Tonight we saw
several shooting stars before we went to
bed. We went to bed early because we
had a big day ahead of us.
Day 2- July 10

We got a really early start for one of
our most ambitious days of the trip.
We shook every tent at about 4:30 a.m.
and left camp to go hike the three-peak
Traveler Circuit hike, totaling about 11
miles of intense hiking.

Our cabin signed in at the beginning
of the trail at about 6:30 a.m. and started
up our first peak. North Traveler. This
was steep hike along a beautiful ridge
overlooking various mountains and
Lower South Branch Pond. We flew up
the first peak. Miles, Cal, Sam, Chip,
Brian and Daniel were leading the pack
at a great pace. Spencer took up the rear
where he constantly cracked jokes and
made it one of the best places to hike if
you liked a good laugh and conversation.
When we got to the top, we had a great
view from one side of the peak, and
we were above the clouds on the other,
making for a great photo op.

The next 2 peaks were the Traveler and
the Peak of the Ridges. We hiked up and
down ridges and boulders for another
couple hours before eating Rocket Fuel
at the top for lunch.

161

The hike down was long and very rocky.
Mac and Daniel powered through injured
knees to accomplish this incredible feat.
About a mile from the end of the hike,
we came across a river running parallel
to the trail. When we reached it, Wallace
almost began to cry with joy. Nearly 10
miles into the hike, it was our first source
of drinking water. As a cabin, we pulled
out our water filters and began drinking
away.

We drove back to the campsite and
steamed up pizza on Boboli crust. Brian
claimed it was the best meal he has ever
had on a trip. Probably because he had
just hiked 11 miles! We went to bed early
knowing that we could sleep in a little
later the next day.
Day 3 - July 11

We got a bit of a late start today and
just about everyone was a little sore. This
morning. Gill and Christian volunteered
to cook sausage, egg and cheeses for the
cabin. They did a great job!

The destination of the day was Ledge
Falls. Ledge Falls is a natural rock
water slide about 10 minutes down the
road from the campsite. We spent the
whole day down there and the kids
had a blast. Everyone was in the water
within a matter of minutes. Chip and
Mac attempted to show me the best
route down the rockslides, but I epicly
failed to hit their line. Stefan took a few
spills on the slippery rocks straight into
the water, putting a huge smile on his
face and then the campers began to go
down the slides in chains. At one point
Chase, Gill and I were all sliding down
practically on top of each other. It was
lots of fun. We ate a big lunch of pep
and cheese, filling everyone up for the
remainder of the afternoon. Later, we
saw a Wavus cabin and South Harrington
at the slides. Sam chose this as a good
time to pull out his second personality,
"Samwell." However, it was nice to see
some familiar faces.

Back at the campsite later in the
afternoon. Miles led a game of Anomia
with much of the cabin. Miles, Cal, Brian
and Chip were nearly unstoppable. They
beat me by double digits every single
round. Miles introduced the game to the
cabin and it became a big hit. Meanwhile,

James started a big game of Keep Away
with the Frisbee followed by a game of
Ultimate Frisbee. For dinner, we had
Dank, a cabin favorite, with mozzarella
and parmesan cheeses, chicken and
bacon.

The day ended with a new ritual that
Brad brought to the trip called moon-up.
We all enjoyed this time at the end of the
day to relax and reflect.
Day 4— July 12

We packed up camp early and headed
out of Baxter State Park, and we met
Reid, Henry Kennedy and Allagash I
at the north entrance where we were
putting in on Grand Lake Matagamon.
They brought us a resupply consisting
of food, canoes, lifejackets, paddles, mail
and fresh fruit for all to enjoy.

It was a short paddle to the Penobscot,
less than 30 minutes. Once we got to the
Penobscot, we had a 100-yard carry. We
did it as a portage to practice for our big
day ahead. Gill and Christian both soloed
this portage. We put in on the river,
paddled for about half a mile and were
at our campsite at Matagamon around
noon. Brad cooked some delicious tuna
melts that we ate with Coca Cola from
the campsite store. Everyone jumped in
the river; Miles even found a watch at
the bottom. That afternoon Chip, James,
Mac, Gill, Cal and more played numerous
games of Can Jam.

That night we had Bacon Cheeseburgers
and made a huge fire while we played
moon up and roasted marshmallows
under the stars. Everyone was pumped
up for our tough day ahead.
Day 5— July 13

Although not incredibly long, today
was by far the most anticipated day of
the trip. It consisted of river paddling
and 2V2 portages, all about half a mile.
Early in the day, Brian and I led the boats
through Stair Falls, the first rapid that we
paddled on the trip. Christian and Cal,
and Gill and Chip followed us through.
Brad and Stefan took up the middle of
the pack and Spencer and James swept
the back to keep the group as a tight
unit. The river was running fairly low, so
many rocks were scraped but we made
it through without any flipped boats or
issues.

162

A couple of miles later we pulled into
our first portage, Haskell Rock. Everyone
pulled his weight. Shortly after, we had
our next two portages, Pond Pitch and
Grand Pitch. We set up camp at the
beginning of Grand Pitch and portaged
the canoes, paddles and lifejackets down
to the end of the portage trail, where
we all jumped in the river to celebrate
the beautiful 90-degree weather. We ate
cold cuts for lunch and spent the rest
of the afternoon swimming beneath
the falls. Spencer and I decided to float
down in the rapids under the falls, and
Chip, Wallace, Miles, Gill and Stefan all
bravely decided to join in!

Wallace and Daniel cooked chicken
bacon ranch for dinner, and talked about
our plan for the next day, which was
heavy on the paddling.
Day 6- July 14

Everyone was starting to get the hang
of the river. We started the day with a
couple of bowls of granola and milk and
everyone took initiative and finished the
remainder of the portage and loaded the
boats. Brian and James would always do
an incredible job loading the boats. On
the first rapid that we hit at Bowlin Falls,
Spencer and James got off course and
flipped their boat. This confused Brad
and Stefan along with Chase and Daniel.
In the end, we flipped all three of these
boats in this rapid. The rest of us sat at
the bottom of the rapid collecting any
gear floating down the river, consisting
of a couple of paddles and tents. Luckily
it was another scorching hot day, so
everything dried quickly.

We hit a big patch of dead water where
we made PB & J on pita while floating
down the river. Today we saw a record
of 11 eagles and 2 moose. After a full
day of paddling, we pulled up to the
top of Whetstone Rapids. Ridden with
mosquitoes, we set up a fire quickly
while Brad cooked up his delicious
crunch wrap tortillas before promptly
heading to bed at an early hour.
Day 7— July 15

Today was sadly our last full day
on the East Branch of the Penobscot.
However, we had a lot in store. We set
out of the campsite early and successfully
ran Whetstone Falls with no scrapes or

163

problems. We paddled for most of the
morning before reaching the rope swing
and bridge. Incredibly, 12 of our 13
campers jumped off the bridge. Stefan,
Gill and Miles would come up each time
yelling about how it was one of the most
fun things they had ever done. It was
great to see their enthusiasm.

We paddled another hundred yards to
the Grindstone Scout where we scouted
the first section of Grindstone and ate roast
beef sandwiches. Everyone was excited
to run a big rapid. After closely scouting,
we ran the rapids. The sternsmen, Sam,
Gill, Christian and Chase, all did a great
job directing their boats down the river.
There were no flips; however. Spencer
lost his beloved tie-dyed bucket hat at
the bottom of the mighty Grindstone. We
spent the rest of the afternoon floating
and swimming in the rips, enjoying the
beautiful weather.

We arrived at Pinegrove Campground
mid-afternoon and enjoyed the
playground and wide open campsite.
James claimed he was "enlightened"
by the delicious taste of pesto pasta for
dinner that Chip helped us prepare. We
used the rest of the night to reflect on the
trip and tight cabin dynamic.
Day 8— July 16

The last day of trips is always
bittersweet. Although we all couldn't
wait to get our first shower in over 8
days and be back at Kieve, it was sad to
be done with the trip. We paddled down
a few small rips for about an hour and a
half before reaching the takeout. While
unloading the canoe, Spencer fell into
the water, soaking himself and ripping
his bathing suit. Everyone got a good
laugh.

Reid picked us up at 10 a.m. and we
headed back to camp, stopping at Five
Guys along the way. It was a perfect
ending to a trip full of hard work and
perseverance. Andy Lynch, HBC

Bank II

Baxter State Park &

East Branch Penobscot River

Evan Kantor, HB

Day 1:

On July 3, 2013, it was time for Bank
II to depart on our 10-day adventure.
Our trip would consist of a primer at
Bigelow Mountain, four days in Baxter
State Park, and finally four days on the
East Branch of the Penobscot River. The
moment after breakfast, where we made
an announcement for our departure, the
boys of Bank II packed into the vans
and took off for our primer at Bigelow
Mountain. The trip took about four
hours, but we jammed out to music and
predicted our favorite moments to come.
By about 2 p .m. we had reached the Round
Barn campsite at Bigelow Mountain: a
beautiful site right on Flagstaff Lake.

Before preparing camp we ate a
delicious lunch of double decker cold
cut sandwiches. Afterwards, the boys
learned how to prepare and maintain
a proper campsite. This included the
elements of Leave No Trace, how to
properly set up a tent, put up a tarp over
the kitchen area, and build a fire. After
the instructional portion of the day, the
boys were ready to relax and hang out.
We played cards, swam in the beautiful
lake, tossed the Frisbee, and settled into
our home for the next couple nights.
The counselors cooked delicious double
bacon cheeseburgers for dinner, which
the boys jubilantly inhaled. Alex Valdes
volunteered to build our first fire after
eagerly listening to our instructions, and
he set the trip off perfectly with a blazer.
After hanging by the fire until about 9:30
it was time to rest up for a long hike up
Bigelow the next day.
Day 2:

(July 4) We woke up on the morning
of our Nation's birth at about 8:30 a.m.
to beautiful weather and an atmosphere
of ambition and excitement awaiting our
climb of Bigelow. We ate Pop Tarts and
Nutri-Grain bars for breakfast in order to
get a quick start up the mountain. Our
campsite was located right next to the
start of the trail, so we were able to begin
our hike right from our tents. We departed

164

around 9, and were off to complete our
primer. The climb was definitely tough:
about 4 miles to the peak, but the boys
were not phased. A mixture of steep,
rocky uphills combined with slippery
conditions ensured a difficult hike.
Towards the peak, when our legs were
tired and our wills withering, there were
a few boys who didn't think they would
be able to make it to the top. McKenna
Palmer specifically had trouble catching
his breath during the long sections of
steep terrain after we had already been
hiking four 3 hours. But, in true Kieve
fashion, McKenna, like a true champion,
overcame the struggle, persevered, and,
with the rest of the group, made it to
Avery Peak in 3 and a half hours. The
peak, which is 4,088 feet tall, awarded
us with glorious views and peanut butter
and jelly sandwiches.

At the top we met a member of the
Bigelow Mountain crew who asked us
to perform a service project in hopes
of maintaining the mountain. We
willingly accepted the offer, and were
tasked with carrying garbage down the
mountain that had been left there by a
Fire Marshall (whose tower is at the peak
of the mountain) in the early 1900's. The
boys took on the task with courage, for
it was no easy task carrying an extra ten
pounds of shingles on their backs. Carter
Feiss and Dana Gajewski especially were
courageous, completely filling their
packs with shingles and carrying them
down the entire mountain. After about 7
hours total we had reached our campsite
again, where we ate Philly cheese steaks
for dinner and enjoyed S 'Mores around
the campfire in celebration of the Fourth
of July. Tomorrow would be a travel day,
and we were in no rush to leave the fire,
so a late bedtime was in order.
Day 3:

(July 5) The boys of Bank II got to sleep
in today, which on the trip means we
woke up at 9:30. We had a big breakfast
of bacon and sausage, egg and cheese
sandwiches on English muffins, and
after breaking down our camp efficiently
and effectively, we departed for our
main trip, which would begin at Baxter
State Park. On the way to the park we
stopped at Dunkin Donuts for a lovely

donut snack, then a few hours later
ate a pep and cheese lunch in the van.
After about 5 hours we had reached
the park, and it took us another hour
to reach our campsite once in the park.
Our campground for the next four nights
was called Nesowadnehunk, and it was
located on a beautiful field with a great
view of many of the mountains in the
park. By then it was about 6:30, so we set
up camp quickly in order to begin dinner
preparations. While dinner was being
cooked, Michael Pilkington and I filled
everyone's water bottles in the river
nearby through our filtration pumps,
which took a solid hour to complete.
When we got back, double downs were
nearly done being cooked; these consist of
two breaded chicken patties surrounding
bacon and Swiss cheese. After dinner
we made a pristine fire, pristine because
the wood was purchased from the park
ranger. Around the fire we played cards
and told stories, and our excitement grew
in anticipation of the hikes that were to
come over the next few days.
Day 4:

(July 6) For our first full day in Baxter
State Park we cooked corned beef hash for
breakfast. Rather, actually, Sam Bedford
cooked corned beef hash for breakfast,
and, boy, did he do a spectacular job.
After breakfast we drove to Daicey Pond
campsite, a beautiful site on a big lake,
and was the beginning of our hike for
that day. Today we would be hiking a
portion of the Appalachian Trail, the
beautiful trail that runs along the entire
East Coast. Along our hike we would
run into two waterfalls, Big Niagara and
Little Niagara. We began our hike to Little
Niagara Falls, and reached it in a little
under an hour. Once there we enjoyed
the incredible view of the falls over a
nice snack before continuing on our way
to the main attraction, Big Niagara Falls.

After another half hour or so we reached
Big Niagara, and boy, was it big. We were
hoping to be able to jump into the end of
the waterfall, but the enormous amounts
of rain this year forced us to admire the
falls from a distance. We did, however,
eat double decker tuna sandwiches for
lunch while we were there, and rested up
a little for the return. Spencer Ducharme

165

showed a lot of courage by stepping out
of his comfort zone and eating the tuna
lunch, which he really doesn't like. But,
at Kieve, we are often thrust out of our
comfort zones, and the manner in which
we handle that shows our real character.
Today, Spencer showed his tremendous
character. On our way back to our
campsite we decided to stop at Ledge
Falls because it was such a beautiful day.
Ledge Falls is the natural waterslides
at Baxter, and always a favorite of the
kids. We were only able to stop there
for a short while, but the kids loved it
so much and begged us to go back, so
that night the counselors decided that
we would surprise the kids the next
day by taking them there all day, if the
weather permitted. When we got back
to camp we rested for a while before
eating chicken and cheese quesadillas.
Afterwards we concluded our evening
in our usual manner; talking around the
campfire and playing cards over laughter
and anticipation for the next day.
Day 5:

(July 7) We woke up today and cooked
bacon, egg and cheeses for breakfast (we
ate pretty well on this trip, in case you
haven't noticed). Afterwards, we filled up

water bottles and mentally prepared the
kids for a lonnnng hike that day (but, of
course, we were planning on surprising
them with the waterslides). The weather
was incredibly sunny, without a cloud
in sight, so we were able to perform our
plan. On our way to the mountain we
quickly turned into the parking spots at
the waterslides, after watching the kids
ogle them through the van windows.
They asked "why are we stopping," and
we told them: "Eh, forget the mountain,
let's just spend the whole day here." The
kids were almost brought to tears with
joy. They screamed, jumped, and hugged
and thanked us for what was sure to be an
unbelievably fun day. The waterslides are
incredible. They consist of three sections
of naturally formed smooth rockslide,
where the kids speed down rapids. Ben
Frey was literally in the water the entire
time we were there. I have never seen
anybody enjoy anything as much as Ben
enjoyed those waterslides. Reluctantly,
after several hours at the waterslides,
we had to return to our campsite. There,
we began our trip long game of Survivor,
where each night the kids would compete
in events until finally only one remained,
and he would get anything he wanted

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from Round Top. The competitions,
of course, were friendly and required
great sportsmanship. We began the
competition by splitting into two groups,
and each group had to create something
out of 50 spruce twigs. The creations
were incredible: a marooned ship on an
island and a crashing plane, with debris
and fumes in accompaniment. The plane
won, but both were amazing, and we
celebrated with big helpings of beef stew.
After the campfire and some cards we ate
S 'Mores, then the boys crashed after a
long day of pure fun.
Day 6:

(July 8) Today would be our last day in
Baxter State Park, so we got up early and
prepared to hike Sentinel Mountain. After
a cereal bar and Nutri-grain breakfast, we
traveled to Kidney Pond site, another
beautiful body of water, and began our
hike. Sentinel Mountain was no easy
climb: it is a 6-mile roundtrip hike,
making it very steep in some sections.
Towards the peak of the mountain there
is a steep sprint which really tests the
willpower of the hikers, but, just like
Bigelow, we did not let it phase us.

When Andrew McArthur led us to
the peak, we were thrilled with the
incredible view, which we enjoyed over
Snickers bars. Big snacks because we
would have a late lunch. After returning
down the mountain, we headed back to
camp, where we cooked grilled cheese
and tomato soup over the campfire
instead of the stove. Cooking on the fire
is always more fun than on the stove.
The lunch was a late one, so by the time
we were finished, it was about 4:30. We
tossed the Frisbee around for a while
and held another Survivor challenge
(a relay race) before having a dinner of
Dank, cooked by Sam Bedford. Dank
is pasta mixed with a lot of cheese and
bacon. Needless to say the boys really
enjoyed it. Afterwards we had our last
campfire in Baxter State Park, our last
with purchased wood. Tomorrow we
would begin the final leg of our trip: the
East Branch of the Penobscot River.
Day 7:

(July 9) We had to wake up early today
because we had to meet the resupply at 10
a.m. at the entrance to Baxter State Park.

At 7 a.m. we were up, packing up camp,
and eating Pop Tarts for breakfast. We met
Reid at the loading dock just outside the
North Entrance to Baxter, and he greeted
us with fresh strawberries, blueberries,
apples, and Coca-Colas. We handed off
our vans to Bank I who was just starting
their trip, loaded up the canoes that Reid
brought us, and before we knew it, we
were on the canoe portion of our trip.
For most of these guys this was the first
time canoeing, so we paddled out to the
middle of the lake for a quick clinic.
Afterwards we paddled across Grand
Matagamon Lake until we got to a dam
that we had to portage around. This
would be the first and shortest of our 5
portages on the trip. The boys did great;
carrying canoes on their shoulders and
all the group gear around the dam and
back into the start of the East Branch of
the Penobscot.

After re-loading our canoes we paddled
for a short distance before reaching
the Matagamon Campground, which
is where we were staying for the night.
We set up camp, ate cold cuts for lunch,
then swam in the river and hung around
the beautiful site. After a little while we
were joined by Long Voyage II, who was
completing their 1 7-day trip the same way
we were completing ours: along the East
Branch of the Penobscot. Seeing another
cabin on the trip is always like seeing a
brother after a long time apart, so it was
great to see them. We ate double bacon
cheeseburgers, cooked tremendously by
Colin Redmond, for dinner, had peanut
M&Ms for dessert, then had a nice early
bedtime for a long day on the river
tomorrow.
Day 8:

(July 10) Today would be our longest
day yet so we got a nice early start.
We ate cereal bars for breakfast and
by 8:30 a.m. we were on the river. We
continued down the river until we got to
Stair Falls, which is a nice little section
of rapids before our first portage of the
day. When we arrived at the portage, the
boys were ready to bust right through it,
because it was only our first of IVz of the
day. The portage is about .4 miles long,
around Haskell Rock, which is a major,
un-runnable section of rapids. The boys

167

were absolutely incredible, and in under
an hour all the canoes and gear were
across the portage, and we were ready to
load them up and get back on the river.

After the portage we had a short little
section of rips, and they were particularly
hairy this year due to all the rain, so Billy
Leyden and Ben Frey's canoe actually
flipped. They handled it extraordinarily,
quickly gaining composure and fixing
their canoe in no time. Once they were
ready to re-join us, we paddled down a
short way until we reached Pond Pitch,
which is another section of rapids that
is just too intense to run. The portage
around it was the same distance as the
first portage, and, once again, the boys
absolutely killed it. Clarence Cox did a
particularly great job handling the group
gear and the group paddles, while Sam
lacavazzi and Conor Knott proved to
easily be our best canoe portaging group.
At the end of the portage trail we ate pep
and cheese for lunch before continuing
down to our final portage of the day at
the Grand Pitch Waterfall. On this short
section we saw a couple moose in the
river. What incredible creatures!

After the sighting we reached the
portage. It was our longest of the day,
but we only had to take our canoes to
the end because we would be camping
at the beginning of the portage trail. The
boys had all the canoes to the end of the
trail in an hour, and we were able to
swim in the waterfall for the rest of the
day. The boys jumped into the end of the
falls, then would swim out to an eddy
and go again. We were even able to get
under the waterfall, which was amazing.
Afterwards we ate Philly cheese steaks
for dinner, told scary stories around the
campfire along with Long Voyage II, and
got to bed after the boys were exhausted
from swlirmiing through waterfalls for
hours.
Day 9:

(July 11) Today, after waking up, we
had to finish the portage that we started
the day before, which meant carrying
the group gear down to the end of the
trail. The boys were able to do it, with
teamwork and perseverance, in one
trip, and at 9 a.m., after a breakfast of
Pop Tarts, we were back on the river.

168

At the very beginning of this long day of
paddling would be our longest, hardest,
and last portage of the trip: The Hulling
Machine. This portage is almost a mile
long, through muddy and rough terrain,
and sometimes hilly sections. But of
course, just like the other challenges of
our trip, the boys absolutely took it by
the horns and defeated it. It took us one
trip to grab all the canoes, another for
group gear, and one last for personal gear.
Teamwork got everything across in just
over an hour, and I couldn't have been
more proud of the boys. It is one of the
harder portages at Kieve, and our boys
made it look easy. We rewarded them
with Milky Ways and peanut butter and
jellys and were off for another 15 miles
of paddling on the river.

The weather was beautiful, the spirits
were high since we were done portaging
for the rest of the trip, and the mood was
great. We chatted down the river, through
Bowlin Falls, past Spencer Rips, and
through the merging of the Seboeis River
with the Penobscot. By around 4:30 we
had reached Whetstone Falls, which is
where we would be setting up camp. We
unloaded our canoes, set up camp, ate
double downs once again, then made a
fire, drank hot chocolate, and reminisced
about the beautiful, challenging, but
most of all rewarding day we had just
completed.
Day 10:

(July 12) Today was our last full day
of the trip, and was sure to be our most
exciting. We would conquer two extreme
rapids today: Whetstone and Grindstone
Falls. We immediately tackled Whetstone
after departing from our campsite, and
beside one canoe with a certain HBC in
the stern that got stuck on a rock, nobody
had any troubles. We paddled a good
amount after Whetstone along a slow
moving portion of the river, which gave
us a chance to relax and psych ourselves
up for Grindstone. Just before reaching
Grindstone, however, there is a railroad
bridge, about 25 feet high, that crosses the
river. The river is deep enough that you
can jump off the bridge, so, of course, we
had to spend a long time there jumping.
After several boys faced their fear of
heights and jumped off the bridge, quite

a few times, we paddled onto Grindstone
Falls. We pulled over to the side, hopped
out of our canoes, and scouted out the
rapids before running them.

Grindstone is a section of 3 different
rapids, each one harder than the last.
After scouting it out, one at a time we
sent canoes down, regrouped at the end
of each section, and repeated. Everything
went perfectly smooth on the first
section, but then on the second section
we had one canoe flip. It was the same
canoe, Billy and Ben's, but once again
they handled it very well, this time with
the help of the group. We all helped
gather their gear and re-load them, and
after gathering ourselves we flawlessly
executed the final section of the rapids.
Overall we did an excellent job on all the
rapids throughout the trip, and the boys
really gained some incredible skills and
canoe talents.

After Grindstone we eased our way to
our final campsite under an incredibly
sunny sky with not a cloud in sight. Our
weather was tremendous the entire trip,
which really makes everything we do 100
times better. By about 5 p.m. we reached
our campsite at Pine Grove just past
Millinocket, where we set up camp, used
working toilets and water supplies, and
hung out for a while on their playground
and by the river. For dinner I surprised
the boys by ordering in pizza from a
local restaurant. It was the perfect way
to cap off our excellent 10-day journey.
We made one last fire, told our final tales
around the circle, and got to bed with the
bittersweet feeling of ending a trip.
Day 11:

(July 13) Our final day of the trip was
really just a paddle to our take-out. We
paddled a little over an hour, through
some small rips, to a public beach in
Medway. After unloading our gear we
awaited our pickup bus, commanded by
Bob Linker. We loaded up the bus, tied
our canoes onto the trailer, said goodbye
to the river, and headed back to camp via
McDonalds. The trip was one of the best
and smoothest I have ever been on, and
that was due to the incredible attitudes
of the boys, and the force of will that
they maintained throughout the entire
journey.

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Allagash 1
C.J. Richardson

Day 1

We woke up at about 5:15 in our cabin
and brought all of our gear outside to
our van. We went down to Pasquaney
for our last camp breakfast before our
journey began. We then met the ONE,
our bus driver, and packed the van up for
our adventure. We drove to Hannibal's
Crossing, the put-in spot for the Allagash
trip, and ate lunch. We then pushed
off with our canoes and paddled about
seven miles to Big Island campsite. We
then settled in for the night, ate cheese
steaks for dinner, and went to sleep.
Day 2

As we woke up on Big Island, we all
sat around the grill and waited for our
delicious breakfast sandwiches. We
pushed off in the early morning and
had an easy paddle down the Penobscot
River. We happily paddled a large lake
until we reached Chesuncook Village.
We bought amazing home-cooked fudge
and root beer. Our next stop was the
famous Mud Pond portage. We got out
of our canoes and emptied all of our
tents and other gear at the campsite.
Next were the canoes and paddles. We
carried 85 pound canoes over our heads
on a mile and a half long portage trail.
The treacherous trail consisted of waist-
deep mud, bloodthirsty mosquitoes, and
a lot of fallen down trees. We happily
ended the portage and returned to our
campsite. We ate the biggest double
bacon cheeseburgers any of us had ever
seen. We all fell asleep from our hard day
of work quickly.
Day 3

Having portaged our canoes through
Mud Pond the previous night, we woke
up and knew what was left for us to do.
We had a breakfast of dried milk and
granola. After eating, we packed up
our gear and headed through the Mud
Pond portage trail once more. Once we
finished portaging our gear, we loaded it
into our canoes and paddled across Mud
Pond. After Mud Pond there was a short
but fast moving stream we entered. This
is where our first and only flip occurred.
Once we got all of stuff back into the once

flipped boat, we paddled and entered
Chamberlain Lake. It wasn't very long
before we got to our campsite and set up
for the night and made a fire. For dinner
we had a great "Dank" meal. "Dank" is
a Kieve term for Mac and Cheese. After
our meal we went to bed and slept well
knowing that we had completed the
toughest part of our trip.
Day 4

Because of the resupply later in the
day, we slept in for an extra hour. By
nine o'clock our stomachs were full with
oatmeal and our canoes were loaded and
ready for a short paddle to the resupply.
Once at the resupply Reid Anderson, the
tripping director, gave us our mail and
new supplies. After an extended lunch
of roast beef sandwiches, we were off for
another long yet rewarding day of lake
paddling to Gravel Beach Campsite. At
this campsite the company of Allagash 2
welcomed us. That night we ate cheese
steaks while watching the sun set over
Chamberlain Lake with the other cabin.
It was a true moment to remember.
Day 5

Happy 4th of July! We woke up at 6:00
AM, packed up our gear and had granola
with powdered milk for breakfast. We
paddled up Chamberlain Lake into
headwinds until we arrived at Lock
Dam. We carried around the Dam and
continued down a small stream until
we got to Eagle Lake. Our cabin then
paddled up the lake until we reached our
campsite for the night. Farm Island. Some
kids thought that the Eagle Lake paddle
was harder than the Mud Pond portage
because of how strong the headwinds
were. When we got to the campsite, we
had grilled cheese and tomato soup for
lunch. For the rest of the afternoon we
swam in the lake and rested preparing
for another day of paddling. We had
double downs for dinner and celebrated
the Fourth of July with sparklers and hot
chocolate around a beautiful campfire.
Day 6

Day six was a very exciting day. We
woke up at the Farm Island campsite,
ate breakfast sandwiches with bacon
and sausage, and headed across Eagle
Lake. After paddling across Eagle Lake,
we stopped at a bridge and ate lunch.

170

Once we finished up lunch, we paddled
under the bridge into Round Pond.
While we were crossing the pond, we
saw two moose! We continued to paddle
and arrived at our campsite called Jaws.
Once at Jaws we saw that a moose was
hanging out right across from us. In
addition, Jake caught some pretty big fish
on his rod called the Dock Demon. We
settled down, ate double downs again
and played several games of Mafia before
heading to bed.
Day 7

We woke up at Jaws and ate a huge
breakfast of bagels with cream cheese
and bacon. We then paddled down to
Churchill Dam, which is the start of the
Allagash River. While we waited for the
rangers to portage our gear so we could
shoot the first set of rapids. Chase Rapids,
dry, we went to the Churchill Dam
museum. There were many interesting
artifacts and photo that we got to look at.
After the museum, our gear was portaged
and it was time to run Chase Rapids. No
one flipped and the rapids were a lot of
fun. Once the rapids were finished, we
picked up our gear and ate some lunch.
We also got to see two Wavus tripping
directors at the pickup spot. We then went
back onto the river. The river slowly got
wider and wider until we hit Umsaskis
Lake. There were terrible headwinds the
entire way to our campsite called Ledges.
We enjoyed double bacon cheeseburgers
for dinner.
Days

We woke up on Umsaskis Lake and
had a stirring and unfamiliar breakfast
of corned beef hash. Everyone was a
little bit displeased with the current
conditions of headwinds on continuous
days. Though we were all relieved to see
the winds had died down and it was an
easy lake-paddling day. We arrived at
the campsite at noon to a grilled cheese
and tomato soup lunch. Today was also
the day we started a game of Survivor.
To not have any confusion, it's based
after the TV show. One team was the
mid- Atlantic kids, Zane, Teddy, Will D.,
Taylor and Jeffers. The other team was
the kids not from the mid- Atlantic, which
were Henry, Will C, Connor, Marty, and
Liam. We also went swimming in a set

of rapids right next to oin: campsite. For
dinner we ate bacon pizza. The rest of
the night consisted of games of Mafia and
some free styling around the campfire.
Day 9

We woke up early and made some
oatmeal for breakfast. After everyone
ate, we left the campsite and started our
paddling for the day. We paddled down
the river through another Round Pond
and then decided to try something new.
Gash paddling. We turned our canoes
around and the bowmen were now the
sterns. We enjoyed a lot of tanning and
swimming and floating down the river.
We went past several campsites that
didn't look too nice to find a beautiful
campsite called Ramsey's Ledge. We ate
a huge meal of rice and chili. We then
ate a cake that we made in the fire and
settled into our tents for the night.
Day 10

We woke up pretty late and ate a
huge breakfast of M&M pancakes. The
pancakes were the size of Frisbees.
After eating and cleaning, we paddled
a very short distance down the river to
Allagash Falls Campsite. We portaged
around the falls and set up camp on the
portage trail. Liam, Marty, Jeffers, and
Taylor all took canoes by themselves,
which is called soloing. After eating a
quick lunch of peanut butter and jelly,
we went swimming at the base of the
waterfalls. It was so much fun seeing and
swimming in the rapids produced by the
huge Allagash waterfall. Then we had
a relaxing afternoon before eating some
delicious Alfredo pasta and some hot
chocolate for dessert.
Day 11

The men of Gash One woke up at 7:30
to partly cloudy skies and the sound
of the roaring waterfall. We packed
up quickly, loading up canoes and
devoured Pop Tarts and cereal bars. We
began our paddle to Evelyn's Field, our
next campsite. On our paddle we passed
a famous sign that says "Leaving the
Allagash Wilderness Waterway". We
stopped and took some cabin pictures.
We then quickly got to our campsite
and had Pepsis that we bought from a
store close by. We ate some beef stew
for dinner, threw the Frisbee around.

172

and went to sleep. We went to sleep
knowing that tomorrow was the last day
of paddling.
Day 12

We woke up and ate another delicious
breakfast of corned beef and hash. We
then started our last day of paddling.
At the beginning of our paddle we
paddled from the Allagash River to the
St. John's River. There were some really
nice rapids on the St. John River before
we got to our campsite called Pelletier's
Campground. Henry Kennedy gave us a
lot of fresh fruit and mail, then met us at
the campsite. Connor, Zane, and Will C.
went back up the river and paddled with
Henry for a couple of hours. We bought
six large pizzas, which we crushed for
dinner and went to sleep.
Day 13

We woke up very early because we
had a long day of driving ahead of us.
We first met Bank One and gave them
our canoes. We then drove and met Long
Voyage One and picked up their canoes
and started our journey back to camp.
We stopped for lunch at Five Guys and
stuffed our faces. We then got back to
camp and slept over at the new property
because our cabin was occupied with the
Junior Kieve campers.
Day 14

After a great rise and shine we had
some cereal with real milk. The real milk
was so good. We then went to Round
Top for some ice cream to celebrate our
accomplishments. Then we drove into
camp, made our entrance, and started the
long process of unpacking. The trip was
unbelievable!

Allagash II

Nick Sanchez, HBC

It still hasn't really hit me yet. In the
blink of an eye, I, my JC, and 10 wild boys
had completed what can only be called
an epic, unforgettable adventure. As I sit
here typing away in an air-conditioned
office, remembering how much we all
grew and experienced a simple life in the
woods, I can't believe 12 amazing days
have gone by so fast. And now I will do
my best to share the story of Allagash II.
Though as the young men of our cabin
will try their best to tell, words cannot
easily describe a journey such as the one
we took in the northern woods of Maine
on the Allagash Wilderness Waterway.

Day 1 - Hannibal's Crossing -
Big Island

As we stepped out of our white van
and slowly started to remove our gear
and canoes from the trailer, caked with
dust from the Golden Road, we suddenly
realized we were a long way from camp
now. We could foggily remember waking
up at 5:00 in the morning to a cold mist
hanging around the campus, getting
every last minor detail of the 12 -day
trip together, and meeting the legendary
"One" who would be our driver for the
6 hours it would take to drive north and
finally arrive at Hannibal's Crossing, the
official start of our unforgettable trip onto
the Allagash Wilderness Waterway.

After taking our time to enjoy our
lunch, watching the swarm of insects
bounce off the windows of the van, we
were ready to start. The put-in under
the small wooden bridge of the crossing,
which is usually a small beach, was
underwater. This was my 4th time doing
the Gash trip and I had never seen the
water this high before. We packed our
wannigans, boundary bags, and the rest
of the gear to accompany us on the two-
week trip into our boats and, saying
goodbye to The One and Mini Mouse, we
were off.

The high water levels gave us some
moving water to gently push us along
down the river, allowing us a relaxing,
sunny afternoon of our first 8 miles of
the trip. Three great Bald Eagles led our

173

way down the river to our first campsite,
Big Island. We took a very long time to
set up camp, lazy from a day of riding
in a van and not much paddling to get
into the swing of things, but we finally
established our first home on the river.
To start it all off right, we embraced a
huge hearty meal of steak and cheese
which our Andrews cooked for us and
were very generous with the amount
they gave. Brooks and Alex took charge
and brought us a ridiculous amount of
wood and so for our first night we had
ourselves a great fire. We all had one
thing on our mind as we headed to bed,
pleasantly full, that night. Tomorrow
was the infamous Mud Pond portage.
Day 2 - BIG ISLAND - GRAVEL
BEACH

Today will live on for the rest of our
lives as the most epic day we have ever
undertaken. We awoke from our tents
to a cold drizzly morning on the river.
A real first morning to start a Kieve trip
to warm us up for what this day would
bring us and remind us that in fact we are
"physically" in the woods. We warmed
up with an excellent breakfast of bacon,
egg and cheese sandwiches and got the
boats into the water all repacked.

Not even 10 minutes down the quick
moving water surrounding the island,
Alex and States decided to take a swim
out of their boats, unfortunately, taking
our kitchen wannigan along with them.
Now we were all really awake after
rescuing their boat and we continued on
without a hitch along the river, with an
overcast day keeping us cool. Very soon
after another 8 miles, we arrived at the
quiet drowsy village of Chesuncook.

After making great time that morning,
we hopped out of our boats and visited the
small store of the town, where the boys
had already heard about the magnificent
root beer and fudge, about which they
had nothing but good things to say. The
cold morning had us all shivering while
we sat to enjoy our treats, so we quickly
got back into the boats to head north and
cross the placid water of Chesuncook
Lake.

With our new-found energy, we crossed
the lake and had to carry over a small
bridge into Umbazookus Stream, a maze

of bugs and reeds that we tried to escape
as fast as we could before Chris was
carried off by the black flies. We found
our way out after crossing the threshold
of the dam into Umbazookus Lake where
the start of Mud Pond was waiting for
us with sinister intent as it always has
for me. We got ourselves all psyched up
as we unloaded and organized our gear
and got ready with pep and cheese for
the portage, the biggest trial of our trip.
We crashed through the trail with our
minds set on destroying the portage in a
single day. Soon we discovered because
of all the rain the north woods has been
having, we could float our canoes on
multiple parts of the trail (if you could
even call it a trail) instead of carrying the
boats on our backs. Andrew Pittman took
the lead with Buck and was constantly
running back and forth along the trail
helping everyone he could, along with
States, no matter how exhausted they
were.

Seven hours later, in what we mostly
remember as a haze of mental and
physical strain, we had carried every last
bit of gear to the other side of the 1.2-
mile portage. We did it. As the boys will
try to as best they can, there is no way
to describe what Mud Pond is, or the
feeling you have at the end when you
know you have accomplished something
incredible and pushed yourself to the
limit. Also knowing you most likely will
never have to do again (unless in my case
where this was my 4th trial in the mud).
We celebrated with Snickers and howls
of victory. But our day was not done yet.

With our adrenaline pumping, we shot
across the actual Mud Pond (which is
nothing more than a large puddle) in no
time and found the small stream to carry
us into Chamberlain Lake. On our way
down the rollercoaster of a stream, Conor
and David found that they were too
muddy still and went into the water, also
catching their boat under a fallen tree
filling it with water, I guess to clean it
out. We pried the boat from underneath
the branches and continued on into
Chamberlain just as the sun was setting.

Our ragged party arrived at Gravel
Beach and we threw ourselves out of our
boats. The day was done. As the zombies

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that were once our boys set up their tents
and changed into dry clothes, we cooked
up some bacon cheeseburgers to well
reward our day of legend. We all passed
out into deep dreamless slumbers, with
the haunting sound of mosquitoes etched
into our eardrums, with a little more hair
on all of our chests. Or maybe it was just
the mud.
Day 3 - Rest Day

We all woke up to our own natural
alarms and to a sun happy to receive us.
A well-needed rest for our aching bodies
after the day before's events. Taking full
advantage of the luxurious beach we had
to ourselves, we lounged and swam in
the refreshing cool water of the gigantic
lake. States, David, Alex, and Brooks
even took out the boats to practice their
T-rescuing skills. With the beautiful day,
we cooked up some grilled cheese, and
were soon joined by Allagash I coming
back from their resupply at the bottom
of Chamberlain. After our lazy day, we
cooked up a huge helping of Dank as our
last dinner for our first leg of the trip.
Tomorrow would be our resupply, so we
went to bed early with our bodies still
somewhat sore, eager for tomorrow.
Day 4 - Resupply Day

A Happy Happy 4th of July! Waking up
early to avoid headwinds on Chamberlain
(which without fail there always are),
we headed south along the shore. Now
we could really see just how big the
lake was, one of the largest in Maine. In
record time, we arrived at Chamberlain
Bridge to await the arrival of the barefoot
wonder Walter and, of course, Dakota.
Distracted by the fruit, soda, snacks,
and, of course, mail, we took our time
to repack our wannigans (now having
double the gear than the 3 days before).
Soon, we had to say goodbye to our good
friends and headed back up the way we
came, back north to Gravel Beach.

As we returned into the open water,
instantly we were hit in the face with
headwinds. Paddling hard, we made
great time back along the coast. On the
return, we jealously watched Gash III
with their tent flies out, sailing to where
we just were, to the bridge. With an
orange afternoon sun at our backs, we
returned to beach and settled back in.

We received a surprise visit from Long
Voyage I as they sailed onto the beach
to join us in our 4th of July night under
the stars, with sparklers. Our last day at
the beach. The next day we cross out of
Chamberlain into Eagle Lake.
Day 5 - Gravel Beach - Pump Handle

We awoke to the sound of roaring
wind outside of our tents. A bad omen
for a long day ahead of us. We got out
of camp early and shot across to the
other shore of Chamberlain to protect
ourselves from the savage winds of the
monstrous lake. After a strong haul
across, we kept to the shallow waters
where 3 otters came bouncing out of the
water ahead of us to lead us to the dam
that was our passageway into Eagle Lake.
We had to carry over the dam to the other
side into a small section of moving water
after being pushed out by a dangerous
"whirlpool". The calm water we floated
in soon opened up into the beautiful
Eagle Lake, but its beauty was lost to us
as the headwinds met us on the other
side. We paddled along the coast in the
gnarliest headwinds we have had yet.
After a couple of hours of giving it our
all, we pulled off to get a break from the
wind and visit the ancient trains of Eagle
Lake. The giant steel beasts that have sat
and rusted for 100 years were a sight to
behold. Worth the struggle of the winds.

After our lunch of PB&J and honey we
returned to our boats to find the winds
gone. Not just gone but slowly picking
up speed in the direction we needed to
go. Worthy of celebration, Henry, States,
Alex, Sam, and the Hennessys busted out
the tarp and sailed along down the lake
while the rest of us let the cool breeze
float us down to the beautiful campsite
of Pump Handle. Though a hard day we
still found our energy and our fun as we
all ran into the cool water to catch the
sun as it set. We shared our camp with a
rabbit named Quentin and enjoyed bacon
burgers on the grassy open patches of our
camp.

Day 6 - Pump Handle - Scofield Point

Compared to yesterday, this day was
a vacation for us. We took our time
in the morning getting packed up and
eating our breakfast of bacon, egg and
cheese sandwiches once again. With

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the wind at our backs we set out, with
Conor's beautiful voice leading us in
singing and enjoying the freedom that
only getting lost in the woods can bring
you, A thin layer of hazy clouds kept us
cool as we traveled through the channel
into Churchill Lake, the last large lake of
the first half of our trip. We took a short
break at John's Bridge to practice some
acrobatics before entering Churchill. To
welcome us into the lake was the very
first moose of our trip, just a baby but we
all took it as a sign of good luck.

In no time at all we crossed to the other
side of the lake and arrived at what we
all agreed was our best campsite of the
trip. The strong winds blowing through
the point kept all the bugs away so there
was plenty of tanning and with the peace
we all enjoyed our books. We took time
to go tubbing and let the wind dry us
off to return to a lunch of grilled cheese
and tomato soup. The boys had a big
Frolf tournament and we settled down
that night with a hearty meal of fiesta
rice and pepperoni. With the wind still
blowing through our camp, the boys set
up hammocks and their sleeping bags
outside to enjoy the crystal clear stars.
Day 7 - Scofield Point - Churchill Dam

A bittersweet day for the boys of
Allagash II. We awoke from our starry
night slumber and lazily packed up
camp with worry on our minds. The
night before Andrew Hennessy had cut
his foot on a tent stake deep enough that
we would not have a way to keep it from ▼
becoming infected since we are in the
water every single day. And David, who
had been fighting off some sort of fever
it seemed, had been getting worse. With
these thoughts in our heads we set out
back onto Churchill and continued north
to the Churchill Dam, where there is a
ranger station that would be able to help
us with our boys' situations. With more
wind at our back, and the boys ' zigzagging
style of paddling, we arrived at the dam,
the border to which the Allagash River
lay on the other side.

As we pulled up, we were greeted by
rangers Josh and Susan. Their truck was
to take our gear 2 miles dovm the river so
we could run Chase Rapids, the first real
rapids and most exciting of the trip, dry

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with no gear. They took me, David and
Andrew to their station so we could make
a call to Kieve about our predicament.
We were told to camp at the dam until
someone arrived to pick up the boys.
Discouraged that we couldn't yet run the
rapids that we worked so hard to get to,
but glad that our boys were getting the
help they needed, we lazily set up camp.
Though the situation was not the best,
spirits were high as we sat next to the
water pouring through the dam, quickly
moving into the rapids that tomorrow we
would ride down.

While we waited for our pick up, we
explored the small museum the dam
had, displaying black and white photos
and old working tools from long long
ago, when this whole waterway was full
of lumberjacks, axe men, raft men, and
others with their families who made
their living off the old land that we now
traveled through for adventure. The card
games were getting intense when a truck
arrived for our boys. Sarah Taylor and
Logan, two directors from Wavus who
had just finished a resupply, took our
two young men and one of our boats
into their truck and sadly we had to say
goodbye. But we had made a plan that
in a couple days on the 10th, we would
soon be reunited after they were looked
at for their ailments. We had a heaping
meal of beef stew, now just a company
of 10, but falling asleep listening to the
rushing hydraulics from the dam, we
knew tomorrow would be a better day.
Day 8 - Churchill Dam - Sweeney
Brook

After the long awaited anticipation of
the mighty river, a week of headwinds,
portaging, and huge lake paddling, we
hit Chase Rapids. We woke up before
the rangers had set the water levels for
the day, enjoyed our bagels and cream
cheese, and we were ready to go. The
rangers' truck was loaded. We thanked
them for all their help and, while they
drove off ahead, we set our boats in the
water, our hearts racing to touch the
rapidly moving water. The mighty Class
II rapids were just what we hoped for as
we went flying down the river, barely
able to contain our excitement. No one
flipped, though Conor and Sam liked to

go down the rapids a little sideways, and
everything was good. We missed our 2
comrades who sadly couldn't be with us
but soon they would return.

We soon made it to the washed-out
bridge where our gear had been left
and as we arrived, a moose was there
watching over all of our stuff. The boys
were so excited that Conor jumped into
the water, he couldn't contain himself.
After the moose left, we repacked and
continued on through the rips here and
there, always moving north. As Chase
Rapids ended and we went onto Long
Lake, our last lake we would have to
paddle, the cold cloudy morning we had
woken to dissipated and the sun came
out to greet us. We passed The Ledges
Campsite where we were supposed to
be the night before and continued on to
cross the 6-mile long lake.

After stopping on a beach to eat our
lunch of pep and cheese, we continued
down the lake where the end seemed so
far off in the distance no matter how hard
we paddled on. In the blistering sun we
came upon Long Lake Dam, collapsed
years before, too dangerous to take our
boats over on account of rouge railway
spikes that could destroy our boats. We
carried around through a campsite where
we met a group from Arcadia, with a
guide who in his 68 years has traveled
the Allagash 66 times, The Slayer the
boys called him. We said goodbye and
a short float later, we found the site of
Sweeney Brook. We were officially back
on schedule.

We had an almost sickening amount of
food for dinner with our double downs
and collected enough wood to build a
bonfire if we wished. Before settling
down after another huge day, Pittman
had a close encounter with a bat and we
could not contain our laughter. Our first
day on the river was over.
Day 9 - Sweeney Brook - Deadwater

We slept in this morning to recover
from yesterday's haul. All the boats were
loaded up and we had a breakfast of Pop
Tarts in the canoes as we drifted down
along into Round Pond, the very last
section of open water we would have
to cross. After this, nothing but river
living. After getting through with the

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pond, we celebrated in the small rips by
the classic act of "Gash paddling" where
the bowman becomes the sternman as
the boat is spun backwards. Lazily, we
floated along, having some PB and Js in
our boats, and all sang our own tunes.
Some of us even fell asleep in our boats.

Every shade and form of green
surrounded us on the river, even
reflected in the river, nothing but pure
green that has grown ancient away from
civilization. Arriving at our campsite,
we were instantly greeted by a swarm of
hellish bugs. As we collected the wood
for a fire to keep the bugs away, we
discovered a snake had made its home on
the warm fire pit rocks. He left as soon as
it got too hot for him and our smoky fire
gave us a break from the bugs to enjoy
our Dank. Tomorrow we were hoping to
find out if we would be reunited with
Andrew and David.
Day 10 - Deadwater - Allagash Falls

With a deadline to keep, we set out
early excited to see if our friends would
be returned to us. An hour of paddling
found us at the Michaud Farm Ranger
Station, and we awaited any news of the
boys' whereabouts. The message arrived
saying to continue on and we would all
be reunited at Allagash Village the next
day. With the good news we continued
on into a swervy maze of paths through
which the falls lay on the other side.
Soon enough, we saw the danger sign for
the falls and we had arrived to the glory
that is Allagash Falls. A short portage
awaited us down a much better built path
than our last trudge through the mu d.

As we finished the carry, and dealt
with a small catastrophe that involved
another camp group almost going over
the falls, we went down to the beach
where we had an amazing time jumping
from the rocks into the flowing water.
Brooks, Henry, and States let the current
take them along down while Pittman
brought firewood across the river (in life
jackets, of course). Down on the beach
Chris, Sam and Conor relaxed skipping
rocks along and Alex was always on the
hunt for more firewood. After enjoying
the monstrous power of our river, we
went back to camp to make our own
pizzas for dinner. We stayed up late to

tell scary stories around the fire. Soon we
all knew we'd be home again at Kieve.
Day 11 - Allagash Falls - Allagash
Village

Our first real day of nothing but living
our lives on the river. A glorious day
for all of us. We headed out early to try
and beat the other groups to the town of
Allagash. As we set out, pushed along
by the massive power of the falls, the
15 miles of constant moving water went
by way too quickly for us. We passed
by the landmark sign of the Allagash
Wilderness Waterway that by next
morning we would be leaving. After 11
days of living along this beautiful water,
with nothing but exceptional weather,
it was somewhat a bittersweet feeling.
Soon now we saw the houses and cars
and actual roads of civilization. Chris
in the front of my boat was so excited
to realize that we have been out in the
wilderness for a long time.

We arrived at the bridge of the village
and unloaded along the beach where
Debbie, the owner of the property,
kindly let us stay for the night. We
bought a little more bread to have
massive sandwiches and soon enough,
Henry Kennedy appeared with our 2 lost
boys! We celebrated with a massive feast
that night and insane and wild games
of Worm Wars and Manhunt. At the
end of our rambunctiousness we settled
down and contemplated the majestic
stars that were more than beautiful, even
with us so close to civilization. Sleeping
underneath the world, we dreamed of
pizza and the St. John's Rapids.
Day 12 - Allagash Village - Pelletier's
Campground

A cold morning mist covered all our
gear, the damp grass we lay in slowly
being evaporated into the sunny sky.
Today was our last day. Sluggishly we
warmed up and got ready to see the
massive rapids of the St. John. This
was it. We left the Allagash River, after
almost 2 weeks of it graciously carrying
us to our final destination. The wide,
wide river and quick current gave us
the ultimate 8-mile run to wrap up our
trip. Taking our sweet time to enjoy
floating down huge rips (Gash paddling,
of course) that despite their massive size

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were nothing for our river mastery. The
sunshine never ceased that day, blessing
us for our rugged travels. At exactly
noon, we heard town bells ring. There
it was. Our final campsite. The beautiful
spread out field that practically invited
us, saying rest your weary bones, you've
earned every second of it.

Lying in the grass, we couldn't believe
we were done. Even when the "One"
arrived, bringing with him a seemingly
endless supply of pizza, we couldn't
fathom what we all had just been
through the past 12 days. With our last
fire burning, our bellies overfull, and
our sleeping bags all laid out around the
pit. We spent our last night reminiscing
under our favorite stars. Tomorrow we
would awake, pack up, and drive the
8 hours back to Kieve. But tonight, our
last night, the Zigzagging Masters of the
Allagash would rejoice. Brothers who
have struggled, grown, and just plain had
fun on our epic journey on the Allagash.

Allagash III

Day One:

Today was our first day on the Allagash
trip so we spent quite a bit of time
driving. We were packed and prepared
so we were allowed to sleep in until the
late hour of five a.m. We filled the trailer
with our food and bags, and we hit the
road with The One and Only driving the
van. After five and a half hours on the
road we turned off onto a dirt road.

We stopped at a little wooden
building in order to check in and make
sure permits were in order. Then we
drove a little further down The Golden
Road to where we were putting in. We
unloaded the boats off of the trailer and
loaded them into the water one by one,
as the wide strip of land that we would
have been putting in on was completely
underwater. We paddled at a nice and
easy pace because we have a nice current
due to the high water. After around six
miles of paddling we stopped at the
campsite to the left of Big Island, as we
lost Big Island to Hackett in a high stakes
rock, paper, scissors game. We set up
camp and are currently sitting around
the fire. -Sam Arcano

Day Two:

Dear Diary,

Today we laughed, some cried, and
had a really, really, really good time. Our
day began bright and early at five a.m.,
and, after breakfast and a quick pack up,
we made our way out of the campsite and
into the river. Minutes later we paddled
by a female moose. Jose was especially
ecstatic about the sighting. We continued
to paddle down river with the speed of
the current to quicken our pace. A few
hours later, the cabin made a pit stop at
the hustling and busy city often known
as Chesuncook Village, population 12.

With bellies full of fudge and root beer
from Chesuncook, we continued paddling
to the Mud Pond portage. There we got
geared up and began wading through the
unusually high water along the portage.
We finished portaging canoes at 6:30,
and arrived back at the base camp and
were greeted by warm cheeseburgers,
Worcestershire sauce and 150 pieces of
bacon. After Kam ate three burgers and
the bacon grease, we swam while the
sunset and then went to bed.

-Andrew Binder

Day Three:

On day three the manly men of Gash III
set out to finish the Mud Pond portage. We
woke up bright and early and enjoyed the
tasty breakfast of granola and milk. After
the portage we got Snickers and set off to
Lake Chamberlain. We paddled through
Mud Pond and the stream. We were
finally on the big bad Lake Chamberlain.
We ate a glorious lunch on Gravel Beach,
and then sailed past Gash II. We finally
got to our campsite and finished the day
with a bailer dinner of Dank.

-George Cole

Day Four:

On day 4 the men of Gash III woke up
pretty early and ate delicious sausage
egg sandwiches cooked by Henry. We
paddled down the Chamberlain Lake
to meet with Rovi, who brought us our
resupply; we spent a lot of time there. We
ate brownies and sodas that he brought
us. We were so happy because we had
gotten more food.

After saying goodbye to Rovi we
paddled back up the lake with pretty
heavy headwinds. We stopped at Ledge

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Point for a rest where we snacked on some
cheese bits. We kept on paddling the lake
until we finally arrived on Gravel Beach.
For dinner we ate delicious chicken
bacon ranch with Long Voyage that was
staying there also. We got an opportunity
to appreciate the beautiful sunset where
we took some great pictures. We had a
beautiful sleep with a blue clear sky.

— Jose Cortes

Day Five:

On day five the "manly men of Gash
III" paddled from Gravel Beach to Farm
Island. We woke up at four a.m. and left
around five a.m.; we had Pop Tarts and
Nutrigrain bars. After we left Gravel
Beach, we had to carry our canoes over
Lock Dam and then continued on to the
Tramways. The Tramways themselves
were standing taller than three grown
men standing on each other shoulders.
They were all rusted and really fun to
climb on. We took a bunch of photos
as well. After we left we had cold cuts,
everyone got two. We ended up sleeping
for a lot of hours as we woke up around
four in the morning that day. I read 103
pages of my book and then dinner rolled
in- Bacon Burgers! Best bacon burger
I've ever had. We all sat around the fire
talking for a while after.

— Andrew Dobbs

Day Six:

On day six the men of Gash III finally
slept in, waking up around seven thirty.
After slowly breaking down camp, we
enjoyed bagels and cream cheese and
left Farm Island into Churchill Lake.
We found our way to Pump Handle
Campsite. For a hike, we hiked a total of
one mile, most of us in flip-flops. At the
top we saw a mother bald eagle teaching
her yearling to fly. We ate Snickers and
returned to paddling.

On our way to Scofield Point we saw a
moose and slowly paddled to within 10
yards of it before it swam to shore and
ran into the woods. We then continued
to Scofield Point where campers made
butter-filled grilled cheeses. After we
slowly leisure paddled to Churchill
Dam, on the way Kam, Mac, Marcus, and
Toofs duck taped their boats together in
order to make a four person rowing team.
Once we reached the ranger station, we

pitched our tents ate dinner around the
fire and went to bed. -Kam Landry
Day Seven:

Today the strong, charming, handsome,
brave, and extremely talented men of
Allagash III braved the Chase Rapids.
We woke up at 8 and after a splendid
breakfast of ice pops, powdered milk,
and granola. They then started rigorously
breaking down the campsite. At around
ten a.m. we started on the rapids, sadly
without one of our group members.
Sam "Avocado" Arcano was unable to
continue due to a recurring neck injury.
After a goodbye to Sam, we started on the
rapid. Surprisingly we made it through
with no canoes flipping.

After a quick break for sweet and salty
bars we finished the rapids and entered
Umsaskis Lake. We then crossed the lake
and got to our campsite, Ledges, in record
time. Once we set up "HQ," we then
took a quick dip and then attempted to
tan on the rocks. We ended the day with
phenomenal cheese pizza and readied
ourselves for another day on the water.

-Marcus Pagliarulo

Day Eight:

It's day eight and we have finally
decided to eat Jose... We started off the
day sleeping in until 9:30. For breakfast
we had oatmeal, which was a great way
to start the day. We then set off onto
Umsaskis Lake and were unfortunate
to not see Sam at the pickup point. We
then continued onward and while we
were canoeing, we had some LOLs and
even some ROFLs. On the river we had
a quick snack of toasted peanut butter
crackers. It was a fairly short day so we
arrived at our campsite. Long Lake Dam,
at 1:00 pm. When we got there we had
a fantastic lunch of Philly cheese. After
that we all played cards and then took
naps. For dinner we had a delicious pot
of beef stew. — Toofs Rowland

Day Nine:

Dear guyary, yes guyary is a manly
version of a journal because journals
are for hamsters. Any Who.. Today we
woke up at... eh a time... I think it was
like... sevenish? And then we ate Oreo
pancakes for breakfast; our counselor
Henry makes the best Oreo pancakes
in the entire world. We then got on the

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water at around eight. Then we paddled
for a few hours, but we really didn't
have to paddle because the wind/current
carried us along. Then after a while
Henry did a bunch of cool and awesome
things and continuously made the kids
laugh non-stop with his impressions. We
then ate on the river a meal of pep and
cheese, the best pep and cheese I've ever
had. We then got to our campsite. Five
Finger North.

There were a lot of snakes at the
campsite for some reason and I'm not
gonna lie, I hate snakes. Fortunately
our rugged counselor Henry braved the
serpents and removed them all from
the campsite. For dinner Henry cooked
up the tastiest bacon alfredo pasta ever.
Also we ran out of toilet paper already....
that's about it. - — Mac Stevens

Day Ten:

Today seems to be day ten, but I don't
care too much, I have not been counting,
most have not. Today we all woke up
with our counselors slapping our tents.
We slowly got out of our tents and bagels
and cream cheese were ready for us. We
made our cold bagels with cold cream
cheese. They were good. We packed up
and left our Five Finger North campsite.
All of us were so lazy that we decided to
paddle for a little bit then raft up together
down the fast moving river. We floated
together as one for some time. I started
out my day as a bowman and ended as a

mojo. Mojo is a person who does not get
a seat on a canoe, an extra person really.

The way up to Gash Falls was very
simple; we rafted most of the way and
stopped at a ranger station to check in.
We rafted for a while after that and I
watched the clouds as 1 relaxed. When
we finally got to Gash Falls, the guys of
Allagash III claimed our spot fast then
some of us soloed our canoes down the
.7-mile portage. I soloed because I'm a
boss like Henry and Mac. We later swam
near the falls, the water was strong. For
dinner we had quesadillas cooked by
Marcus, they were incredible. Some of
the guys went fly-fishing, I stayed back.
I could be camping for another ten days
but we are running out of food. Well,
that's the story of Gash III...

-Michael Tirone

Day Eleven:

For the last day on the Allagash River,
it was a glorious one. We rose early to
a very cold but crystal clear morning
at Gash Falls, and with it a huge batch
of Oreo pancakes. It was a rather slow
morning, but the boys enjoyed it and
definitely enjoyed the time it gave them
to scrape the pot clean of batter. Once on
the river, we pushed to the official end
of the Allagash Wilderness Waterway,
allowing the current to do most of the
work. Spirits were high all morning as
the miles flew by. Per Marcus' demands,
the boys snacked on Rice Krispy treats,

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which held us over till lunch. Finally
civilization appeared on the horizon as
the first roofs showed through the trees.

We set up camp at Evelyn's field and
checked in with Debbie on our arrival.
The guys were quick to entertain
themselves with games of Frisbee,
football, to floating down river. Henry
and I visited the wilderness store and
returned with the only item the store had
nine of, orange KoolAid packs. The day
was capped with a bucket of pesto pasta
and several rounds of Boundary Bag
sledding. The boys have settled down
outside for the night to watch the stars
though it's yet to be determined if they'll
be able to withstand the bugs.

-Mac Keyser

Day Twelve:

It was an early morning for the dudes
of Gash III as Evelyn's open field quickly
allowed for the sun to blare down on
us. After a long wait for the stove to boil
the water, we filled our stomachs with
oatmeal. We quickly took to the water
as the excitement of reaching our goal
of beasting the Allagash was very much
present. After Mac and I lathered on 100
SPF and ordered the campers to do the
same, we turned our attention to the swift
St. John River water. Hours flew by and
before we knew it, we were seeing red
trash cans on the right bank of the river,
the marking of Pelletier's campsite and
the end of the Allagash trip. We waited
for what seemed to be months for Walter
to show up with the magnificent dinner
of pizza. Pizza never tastes as good as it
does after multiple days of being in the
woods. The eleven of us ate seven pizzas
in under twenty minutes. After a couple
of games of Mafia, the boys hit their tents
and we all fell into deep food comas.

--Henry Clark

Day Thirteen:

On the last day, the boys woke up
and loaded up the van and trailer. With
a breakfast of leftover snacks, we took
to the road with Walter for an 8-hour
drive south back to camp. With a stop
in the middle at the prestigious Five
Guys burger joint, we made it back to
camp in record time with Walter's deep
knowledge of Maine's backwoods.

-Henry Clark

Long Voyage I
The Long Voyage
Hib Schenck, HBC

Day 1, June 28:

We left Kieve just before 10:30 this
morning, which was ahead of schedule
considering the day started late because
of rain. We were glad that this day was
only a day of driving with The One,
because it poured rain all the way to
the Birches, our first campsite on the
shores of Moosehead Lake, just North
of Rockwood. We rode (and many slept)
warm and comfy inside the van whilst
rain pelted the windows for the entire
drive. Luckily we only had to brave the
elements once, when we had to stop at
Wal-mart to pick up some last minute
supplies and get the lunch makings out of
our trailer. Lunch consisted of a massive
cold cut sandwich for each person with
four different types of meat and a variety
of condiments to choose from.

After another couple hours in the van,
we finally arrived at the Birches and
checked in. Fortunately the rain had
subsided toward the very end of our drive,
and so we could set up camp without
soaking our tents. Once camp had been
set up, everybody retired to their tents for
some more napping and reading while a
light rain fell outside. Dinner was cheese
steaks cooked by Matty Sullivan, our
resident chef, and they were amazing, a
great way to kick off our trip food. It was
an early night for the cabin because we
will be up early (4:30 a.m.) to beat the
headwinds on Moosehead Lake.

- Hib Schenck

Day 2, June 29:

Today we had an early wake-up at
4:30. We needed this early start to beat
the notorious headwinds on Moosehead.
Thankfully, there were no headwinds
today and we made it to our camp by
9:30 a.m. We made great time despite
getting rained on nearly the whole day,
and being narrowly missed by a huge
thunderstorm. Instead of camping at the
normal site for Long Voyage, Seboomook
Point Campground, we camped today at
Hib's family's cabin the next point over,
which was awesome. We got to have a
real bathroom for one more night, and

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the screened-in eating porch was a nice
kitchen area for our group.

Because we got in to camp so early, we
had plenty of time to catch up on sleep
from our early morning. After the whole
cabin took a two-hour nap, we had
some awesome PB&Js for lunch, except
for Jack, of course, who just had jelly.
Thundershowers and sunshine seemed
to rotate on and off for the rest of the
day, but the sun seemed to win the battle
as the day went on so we got to dry our
gear out which was really nice. But you
know what they say: "If you don't like
the weather in Maine, wait a minute."
The afternoon consisted of swimming
and tanning on Hib's dock and dinner
was delicious Italian sausages, which
Teo informed us were not actually from
Italy but from Germany, cooked once
again by Sully. We've got another early
night tonight, because tomorrow is the
Northeast Carry, a 2.3 mile long portage,
the longest Kieve does. - Andrew Connor
Day 3, June 30:

It was an early start to day 3, our most
eventful so far. We awoke to blue skies
and oatmeal, but it seemed as though we
were all thinking about the Northeast
Carry, which we had heard much about,
not a lot good. After breakfast we loaded
our boats from Hib's house and set out
on the brief two-mile paddle to the little
town of Northeast Carry, where the trail
starts. When we arrived, we wasted no
time and immediately put the canoes on
our backs and set off down the road. The
portage was full of pain and difficulty,
but we were rewarded with Cokes and
our own sense of accomplishment at
the end. Jack, Aidan, Andrew, Jake,
and Sully all soloed the portage, which
was extremely impressive and made the
whole thing easier since our second trip
was much lighter.

After a nice break we loaded our boats
and started paddling down the West
Branch of the Penobscot, headed for Big
Island, our campsite for the night. Since
we knew that Allagash I would be staying
there as well, we decided to hustle to
try to beat them and get the better site,
though both are nice. The 6-mile paddle
took longer than anticipated, and our
fatigue from the carry did not help at all.

Despite our perseverance, Allagash beat
us to Bog Island and we had to settle
for the second site on the left bank of
the river, which wasn't terrible after all.
We pulled up the boats and set up camp
before enjoying another lunch of insane
cold cut sandwiches. After lunch, half
the cabin napped while the other half
swam across the river to hang out with
Gash for a little while.

For dinner, we gathered around the
fire and ate chicken bacon ranch double-
downs, which were awesome beyond
description. Sam Pinsky provided some
after dinner entertainment with an
original three act play, then it was some
more chilling by the fire, before heading
to bed, hopeful for tomorrow's weather
because of the old saying, "Red sky at
night, sailor's delight; red sky in the
morning, sailors take warning."

- JeffCoote

Day 4, July 1:

Rabbit, rabbit. We woke up at 6 a.m.
and packed up immediately, knowing
the very long day we had ahead of
ourselves. Before leaving Big Island, we
had a light breakfast of bagels and cream
cheese. We left the campsite at about
6:30 to finish up the West Branch of
the Penobscot and head to our first stop
of the day, Chesuncook Village, home
of the Store in the Woods. The Store
is legendary for its fudge and root beer
and a virtually mandatory stop for any
Kieve trip venturing near its delicious
sweets. We snacked on the amazing
chocolate and got back into our boats to
head across the lake toward our eventual
destination, the Horserace Rapid. We
arrived in Black Pond at around noon
and had a lunch of pep and cheese and
some Oreos to fuel us for the endurance
nightmare that we were about to attempt.
After lunch we continued to push
ourselves, having already finished the
planned day's paddle but wanting more.
After Black Pond we began to paddle up
Caucomgomoc Stream until we hit the
rapids. By the time we hopped out of
our boats to begin this long haul, we had
already paddled 18 miles.

Walking up the rapids with our boats
was very tough and the two miles felt
much longer. Our efforts finally rewarded

185

us just before sunset when we came
around a corner and saw the dam that
marked the end, or beginning if you're a
normal person who goes down rivers, of
the rapid. A beautiful view and a huge
sense of accomplishment were our prizes
for the huge day we had just finished. We
ran right into the waters of Caucomgomoc
Lake and snapped a few photos before
unpacking the boats and making camp.
That night, Sully made the dankest Dank
that ever danked with help of sous chefs
Andrew and Nate. The food helped the
pain from the blisters and bruises hurt a
little less that night and we were asleep
soon after our insane day.

- Leighton Galvin

Day 5, July 2:

Today was a great day. We woke up
at 12:45 in the afternoon to corn beef
hash cooked by none other than Sully.
After breakfast we got in the boats and
started paddling, our day was a short
one, only four miles, from the top of the
Horserace to Round Pond. We paddled
down a slow-moving river last, saw some
wildlife, including a moose and a family
of ducklings. Once we reached our
campsite. Sully whipped up some grilled
cheese with bacon and tomato soup to
go with it. After lunch, we realized that
we had some extra snacks since our
resupply is tomorrow so we dug into
some Nutri-Grain bars and Snickers in
the afternoon. We passed the time rap
battling until dinner, which was some
of the best bacon cheeseburgers ever. We
were all still hungry even after snacking
all afternoon, so we were grateful to
Sully for cooking well as usual. Dinner
was momentarily interrupted as Jake
Taylor died, becoming the first victim in
our game of Killer, begun that afternoon.
After dinner, we trickled to our tents
where we fell asleep before our resupply
tomorrow. - Matt Harrison

Day 6, July 3:

Today we feasted on a breakfast of
"mash-cakes" after waking up and
taking down camp in preparation for
our resupply. These "mash-cakes" were
mashed up pancakes filled with M&M's,
Milky Ways, honey, syrup, and Oreos.
Once our resupply arrived, we transferred
our gear and were driven to exactly one

mile from Allagash Lake, which is as
close as any car is allowed to get. From
there we portaged our boats and our full
wanns and coolers to the lake before
having a smorgasbord lunch of fresh
fruit, beef jerky, snacks, cold Cokes, and
candy from our care packages. Jeff Coote
soloed for the first time on this portage
along with those of us who had done it
on the Northeast Carry. The view of the
pristine lake was breathtaking and the
perfect reward for the hard work we had
just recently done. After that, we paddled
Allagash Lake for about four miles before
reaching our campsite, the Ice Caves.

The Ice Caves was a very nice site
and had a really cool feature, the cave
for which it was named. After we set
up camp, we all climbed a little hill and
found the mouth of the cave stretching
down into the earth. The cave was
narrow and it took a bit of a squeeze to
get through to the bottom, but if you went
all the way down, you got to see walls
covered in ice, and that was really cool.
After our little expedition, we returned
to the campsite and had a delicious
dinner of teriyaki chicken sandwiches
before retiring to our tents to sleep after
our huge day. - Jack Kilgallon

Day 7, July 4:

Happy America Day, everybody!
Today, or more appropriately, America's
day, we began with a 7:00 a.m. wakeup
followed by cereal bars for breakfast.
We left the Ice Caves early and paddled
across Allagash Lake to Allagash Stream,
where we immediately found ourselves
in rapids. A few hours later, after three
boats flipped, we exited the rapids on
to the massive Lake Chamberlain. After
a quick break and a swim, we set out
on a grueling 15-mile paddle, that we
were forced to endure despite a tailwind
because the tent flies would not catch
when we tried sailing. Finally, we made
it to Gravel Beach, which many of us
were familiar with from our Allagash
trip last year. Arriving at the campsite at
3:30, we finally satisfied our hunger with
"rocket fuel," a.k.a. PB&Js with Snickers
in the middle of each sandwich.

With our stomachs full, some of us
decided to nap in the tents while others
tanned and read on the beach for the

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afternoon. After patriotic-themed dinner
skits were presented by each tent group;
we dined on a fest of Philly cheese
steaks that were incredible. Since we
were sharing the campsite with Allagash
III, both cabins shared a fire to make
S 'Mores, then finally ended the day with
some sparklers on the beach after sunset.
Then we all took to our tents for a good
night's sleep after another huge day on
the water. - Nate Stuart

Day 8, July 5:

Today we woke up at around 11 a.m.
and had a delightful meal of breakfast
sandwiches prepared once again by
our faithful chef. Sully. We hung out at
Gravel Beach for a while longer before
departing on our leisurely 5-mile paddle
to Boy Scout Campsite. After arriving at
our campsite, we ate a lunch of pep and
cheese once camp had been set up. We
chilled out for the rest of the afternoon
and took advantage of our short day by
resting before dinner. Dinner was served
by Sully and Teo and consisted of chicken
pesto pasta, which was amazing. We
made a fire and tossed the disc around
for a little while before going to bed after
a relaxing day. - Aidan Slack-Watkins
Day 9, July 6:

We started out fairly relaxed this
morning at 9. The breakdown of camp
was quick followed by bagels and cream
cheese for breakfast. After eating we
set out on another short day, only four
miles to our campsite for the night. We
made a quick stop at the ranger station
across the lake from our departure point
to try to get some info on Webster Stream
and Webster Brook, but unfortunately
the ranger was not present at the time
we stopped, so we continued on. Some
cloudy skies seemed like they might
bring some bad weather, but nothing
came of it and we soon reached our site,
Field. It was a nice site, but really not all
that field-ish. We set up camp, then hung
out and swam and played Frisbee, while
waiting for dinner.

Jack and I made dinner. Bacon
cheeseburgers that everybody said were
really, really good, then we hung out for
the remainder of the day. Hib finished
A Storm of Swords, the third book in
the Game of Thrones series, and was

dismayed to still have so much time left
in the trip, but no more books to read.
Before going to bed, we heard some scary
stories and then spent a good hour or
more scaring the living daylights out of
each other which was hilarious and a lot
of fun. - Matty Sullivan

Day 10, July 7:

After several late starts, we had another
today before another round of delicious
breakfast sandwiches cooked by Sully.
We set out for Webster Stream and tied
all of our gear to the boats in preparation
for the rapids we were about to travel.
After carrying around the Telos Dam, we
began the rapids, which were much more
difficult than usual due to the very high
water levels. Every boat except Jeff Coote
and Jack Kilgallon flipped, and Sully
and Leighton ended up having to track
their boat a mile and half down stream
in Webster Lake. We all set out on our
own quests to right our boats. Eventually
we righted all the boats, even Nate's and
mine. It was stuck under a strainer and,
after we emptied the gear out, Hib and Eli
helped us to get the boat free. It took all
of our combined strength to move it but
after a few tries from different angles, we
floated it free. Unfortunately the slight
crack that it had at the beginning of the
trip had become a huge hole that Henry
Coote and Hib used almost half a roll of
duck tape to fix.

Once we were all together again,
we headed down Webster Lake to our
campsite Little Coffeelos. Lunch was a
great grilled cheese with some tomato
soup and we hung out and let our
gear dry for the afternoon. Sully and I
cooked dinner, which were BBQ chicken
sandwiches that everyone loved. We
went to bed early to prepare for Webster
Brook, which will be the biggest day of
the whole trip and in high water that
could be scary. - Jake Taylor

Day 11, July 8:

Because of poor weather, we woke
up at 7:30 instead of 6:30 to give the
day a chance to warm up. Our breakfast
consisted of cereal bars before we packed
up the canoes and headed out to face our
destiny. Then we got into our canoes
and paddled a couple of miles until we
reached the top of Webster Brook. We

188

said a quick prayer and were on our way
down the toughest and most technical
Whitewater that Kieve does. We carefully
picked our way down the first third of
the river and managed to survive the rips
with no one flipping. The middle third
was flat and winding so it was easy and
we made good progress before reaching
the last third of the river, the rapids that
Webster Brook is infamous for.

The last third began with a couple ledge
drops that everybody made it over, then
the biggest rapid of the day, Indian Carry.
After scouting, we attempted to shoot
it and all but two of our boats flipped,
creating absolute carnage. Luckily no
boats were damaged, no gear was lost,
and no people were hurt. We gathered
ourselves up and began moving down
river over the five sets of rapids that are
between Indian Carry and Grand Pitch,
the portage that ends Webster Brook. We
carefully scouted the fourth set, which
was the hardest and over the rest of the
course of the day, only one boat flipped,
Jeff and Jack. They were the only boat to
that point in the trip that hadn't flipped
so some of us were secretly happy that
they had finally tipped, especially since
nothing bad came of it. Hib and I were the
only boat to make it through the entirety
of Webster Brook without flipping which
as awesome. We survived the rapids and
the portage, remembering that Kieve is
about courage, perseverance, and loyalty.
After the river, we padded another 13
miles all the way across Grand Lake
Matagamon before quickly carrying
around the Matagamon Dam into the East
Brand of the Penobscot River and to our
campsite and Matagamon Campground.
Leighton, Matt Harrison, and we all
soloed canoes for the first time on the
trip, which was really cool. We got ice-
cold sodas and had Dank as a reward for
the longest and toughest day of the trip
being over. - Sam Pinsky

Day 12, July 9:

We woke up today to a wonderful
breakfast of bacon, egg and cheese
sandwiches from the store at the
campground. It was the best breakfast
sandwich I have ever eaten in my entire
life. After that enjoyable beginning to
the day, we set out on the East Branch

of the Penobscot and got to Gash paddle
for the first time on the trip. We had a
short paddle followed by the best part
of our day, then the worst. We did Stair
Falls, which is a fun collection of ledge
drops, but then we had to do the Haskell
Rock portage. With adrenaline pumping
in our veins, we courageously conquered
the falls, then saddled up and rocked the
portage. Every boat except for one with
a broken yoke was soloed by a camper,
which was amazing.

After the first portage, we canoed
down river to the next portage. Pond
Pitch. That was a shorter carry, which
was nice, and then we ventured a little
further down river to the last portage
of the day. Grand Pitch. We carried
the boats down to the end and made
camp. Unfortunately we were cramped
into a smaller space because we had to
share our campsite with a large Wavus
group, but we had a great dinner of rice
and Alfredo sauce after spending the
day tubbing and then hanging out in a
really cool whirlpool at the bottom of
the waterfall. We went to bed early so
we could get a good rest before the last
portage of our trip tomorrow.

- Teo Ciserani

Day 13, July 10:

Today was a fantastic day had by all.
Shortly after leaving the Grand Pitch
campsite, we found ourselves portaging
once again. This time around a huge
rapid called the Hulling Machine. This
was the last portage of the trip, and the
last one that the campers would do in
their Kieve careers, and they crushed it.
We were done in just under 90 minutes.

After completing the portage, we began
the long slow paddle to Whetstone Falls.
Headwinds made our trip longer than
we would have liked, but we still made
great time and managed to make camp
at a very nice campsite above the falls
at around 1:30. Upon arrival, we set up
camp and had rocket fuel for lunch with
the last of our bread. Following our meal,
some campers retired to their tents to nap
while others played Manhunt to entertain
themselves. After a well-deserved rest,
we sat around the campfire and ate corn
beef hash (a cabin favorite) and told
stories. After a few hours of jokes and

189

funny stories, we called it a night to grab
some shuteye before the last day of canoe
paddling in the Kieve camper careers for
these boys. - Eli Campbell

Day 14, July 11:

Our final day of paddling was upon us
as we left our campsite above Whetstone
Falls and began paddling toward our last
campsite on the Penobscot. After a cereal
bar breakfast, we made it down the rapids
just below our campsite and continued
paddling downriver for about two hours
before getting to a train bridge over the
river where we stopped and got to jump
off a few times. A few of the braver souls
in the cabin elected to take the 35-foot
plunge into the cold water.

After our short break, we proceeded
a little while downriver to the scouting
location for Grindstone Rapids. We had a
snack lunch and scouted the rapids for a
while before deciding that it was time to
go for it. With a crowd of locals looking
on, we made our way down the rapids in
excellent form, with only one flip, and
that due to the way the canoe beached on
the side of the river when Hib and Sam
tried to bail out their boat.

After Grindstone, we Gash paddled
down the rest of the river, even through
a few rips, and on to our campsite for the
night at Pine Grove. We pulled the boats
out of the water and congratulated the
boys on a job well done, and on ending
their Kieve camper canoe careers. We set
up camp and hung out, taking advantage
of the fresh, if not so good tasting, water
provided, as well as using the driveway
basketball net for a few games of pickup
hoops. Beef stew was dinner after the
basketball and we called it a night, all
very excited for our resupply the next
day. - Henry Coote

Day 15, July 12:

We woke up today just before 9 am.
After taking down camp, we had a few
hours to kill before our resupply arrived,
so we tossed the disc around and killed
off our remaining extra snacks. Trivia
was a popular time-killer, with kashi bar
prizes. Our resupply arrived around 11:30
and we got to socialize with Allagash I
and Henry Kennedy as we packed our
canoes and empty wanns into their
canoe trailer and got our resupply food

and the all-important mail. After the
resupply meet-up, we went our separate
ways and the boys of Voyage I ventured
into Millinocket, where we stopped at
Hannaford's to pick up some snacks.
Cokes, and dinner for that night. After
Hannaford's, we rolled across the street
to McDonald's for lunch, as per HRK's
suggestion. We gorged ourselves on the
sweet nectar of fast food after our two-
week river enduro and then headed off to
the Northwest into Baxter State Park.

We drove deep into the park to get to our
campsite, a place called Nesowadnehunk
Field. We set up camp then headed
to some natural waterslides nearby to
kill some time before dinner. Once we
returned to the site, we got the wood fire
going, and started prepping our dinner,
steaks. We used a cracked peppercorn
dry rub from Hannaford's to season the
steaks and threw them on the grill over
the wood fire. After our delicious dinner,
we had an early night to prepare for our
super early start for Katahdin tomorrow.

- Hib Schenck

Day 16, July 13:

We woke up bright and early today
at 4:00 a.m. to cook some breakfast
Sammies before piling into the van to
drive to Katahdin Stream Campground,
where we would take the Hunt Trail
up Katahdin. This trail is also the way
Maine Trails hikes the mountain because
it is the Appalachian Trail. We started
our Long Voyage to the top around 7
a.m., and hiked as a group through the
tree line before separating a little bit
after we entered the boulder field on the
Hunt Spur. As the ascent continued, we
scrambled over the massive boulders
and eventually reached the Table Lands,
and from there it was smooth sailing.
We managed the climb up in about
three hours and thirty minutes, a pretty
respectable time.

After a nice long break at the top that
featured snacks and a few awesome
pictures, we decided to begin our
descent. Although the downhill was
somewhat less exhausting, it was tricky
and dangerous. Our group was slowed
some because Hib tweaked his ankle,
but we kept going until we reached the
bottom and the feeling of being done and

190

being able to sit down, then get into the
air conditioned van was amazing. After
our long adventure, we could finally
look ourselves in the mirror and say, "I
climbed Katahdin."

We got back to the campsite where we
saw Long Voyage II, which was fun to
have happen, then we dined on chicken
bacon ranch sandwiches before passing
out after our long ordeal. - Sam Pinsky
Day 17, July 14:

Today, the day after Katahdin, we
were rewarded with a late wake-up and a
breakfast of oatmeal, followed by a long
period of just hanging out and resting.
We read our books and went swimming
in the stream by our campsite. After a
lunch of grilled cheese and turkey, using
up some of the last meat, we travelled
to the waterslides to hang out before
leaving Baxter and heading to the rafting
center for the night. The drive from the
campsite to the rafting lodge was fun
because we had finally gotten an iPod to
listen to in the van because it had come
with Long Voyage 2's resupply instead of
ours for some reason.

Once we got to the rafting center, we
played a cabin-wide game of volleyball
and hung out around the campsite. For
dinner we had "steamboats," which were
chicken, potatoes, and veggies with all
the sauces and spices you could dream
of all rolled up into a burrito shape
inside tinfoil and thrown into the fire.
After dinner it was another early night
because of our necessarily early morning
for rafting. - Jake Taylor

Day 18, July 15:

Our final day of Long Voyage began
early, at 6 a.m. Immediately we began
taking down camp for the last time. We
then had bagels and cream cheese for
breakfast and gathered at the lodge for
our briefing. After meeting our guides,
we hopped on the bus to the river. We
began our Whitewater journey on the
West Branch of the Penobscot.

At the put-in, the guides were surprised
as the waters rose when we were about to
drop the boats in the water. As we passed
a small sign that indicated the cubic feet
^ per second of water passing under the
dam, the number jumped from 2300
to 3200. We were confident, though,

because of the experience of the past two
weeks and the knowledge that they had
made us strong paddlers.

The day began with two straight Class
V rapids. First was the Exterminator, a
huge rapid inside the Ripogenus Gorge,
where the cliff walls go straight down into
the churning white water. The second
rapid, nearly overshadowed by the first
but even more difficult, the Crib Works,
proved to be another tough but really
fun time. We avoided flips or swimmers
through these two sets of white water.

After a few hours of awesome rafting
we stopped for lunch. We had the option
of steak, chicken, or salmon, and there
was also rice and pasta salad. We were
silent during the meal because it was so
good nobody wanted to stop eating long
enough to have a conversation. There
was leftover pasta afterward, so Eli and
I had a no-hands eating competition,
which I won.

When we finished our delicious lunch,
we set off toward Nesowadnehunk Falls,
better known as Lose-Your-Lunch Falls.
As a group we went over the falls six
times and only had one flip. We also
went surfing on the waterfall, which
was sweet, but a few people fell out. Our
day continued with more rapids and
swimming and everyone was in high
spirits the whole day, but at the end
of the rafting the fact that our trip was
pretty much over hit us. We still had Big
G's to look forward too, which was just
about three hours away.

After a group nap, except for Hib
who was driving, we made it to Big
G's before they closed and ordered the
best sandwiches in Maine. We stuffed
ourselves and got back into the van and
set off for Kieve and home. We were all in
full food comas, but there was one more
stop that we had to make before Kieve.
Round Top ice cream at the end of a trip
is a Kieve tradition and our counselors
got us there just in time to grab some
delicious treats before it closed. With
our stomachs full to bursting, we got in
the van one last time, and reflected on
the best trip Kieve has to offer. But we
didn't have long to think because we had
a final jam sesh to properly end our Long
Voyage. - Jeff Coote

191

Long Voyage II
The Long Voyage
Zach Atchinson, HBC

Day 1 - 6/29 - Birches:

After the boys had a late night packing
personal snack bags for the trip, we were
tossed into a whirlwind beginning to the
trip. Pulling the coolers and wannigans
out of the trip shack took some significant
effort as the recent arrival of the food
order had boxed in our supplies for the
trip. With the boats, supplies, and food
finally loaded into the trailer under the
canoes, we were on the road with The
One barreling north toward Moosehead
Lake. Stopping for sandwiches on the
road took no time at all, and soon we had
arrived at the Birches Campground.

Though the weather had been strictly
precipitation for much of the day, we
were granted a brief reprieve from the
rain as we set up camp for the first time.
Bacon cheeseburgers were prepared and
devoured under the tarp as we tried to
avoid getting drenched, and when the
weather finally broke again we were
fortunate to glimpse an otter swimming
around carelessly in the lake near the
campsite. The infamous card game began
with the dispersal of cards (Pokemon,
Magic, Football, Baseball, playing cards,
and more!), and we sat around a fire
trying to guess who had come up with
each categorical item. The mood was
high in spite of the weather, and we all
went to bed early in anticipation of an
early morning to come.
Day 2 - 6/30 - Seboomook Point:

The alarms began sounding at 4:00 AM,
and by 4:30 we had started packing up the
campsite and distributed the breakfast
bars. The boats were loaded quickly
and before we knew it, we were on the
water. The forecast had promised decent
weather until the ominous potential of
thunderstorms loomed after 2 PM, and
rain was the last of our concerns. The fog
in the forecast didn't set off any alarms,
but we soon realized what a folly that
was; as we made our way further across
the lake, we were forced to take notice of
the impending fog and adjust our plans
according. As quickly as it started to roll
in, the fog became problematic. Cutting

across the mouths of various bays, the
whole group was enveloped by the grey
mist growing denser by the second in
every direction. Paddling blind across
Maine's largest lake, we guessed our way
toward the bank and followed it with
an ominous sense of foreboding. When
it finally dissipated almost as quickly as
it had arrived, we were able to work our
way through the remainder of the lake
with clear visibility and ease. Pulling
into Seboomook Point at only 10:30
AM, we had the rest of the day to enjoy.
Though we contemplated pushing on
through the Northeast Carry a day early,
we decided to stay put and set up camp.
Bagels and cream cheese offered a quick
and easy lunch, and we were able to get
some swimming in before noon.

Four hammocks became three during
a makeshift rest period on the point, and
soon we were devouring pesto cheese
tortellini. Lightening sparkled over
distant mountains to light up the evening
sky, and we played cards around the
picnic table until any trace of the sun
had fully disappeared.
Day 3 - 7/1 - Ouellettes:

What a long day it was. A natural
wakeup at around 8:30 gave us time to
break down camp while we prepped
the breakfast sandwiches. We swept the
campsite for trash and microtrash before
hitting the water, and as we headed
down the remainder of Moosehead Lake,
we were all mentally preparing for the
impending grueling portage ahead. Intent
on getting it out of the way quickly, we
proceeded with vigor.

Pulling out at the trailhead we quickly
emptied the boats and began our march
toward the West Branch of the Penobscot
River. Tristan, Alex, and Conner all
soloed canoes while Joey won MVP of
the portage sprinting down the trail with
the K-wan. Will and T-Bone shared the
last canoe and as we worked our way
down the muddy trail at the end of the
road, it became evident just how high the
river was running. The riverbank at the
end of the portage trail was nonexistent,
with the water flooding up over the bank
onto the land. Though the store along the
way was closed, we stopped at the end
of our second and final lap of the portage

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to fill our water bottles at the blue tank
spigot before getting in the water.

Rocket fuel on the water reinvigorated
our efforts, and we were soon on the
move once more. The high water was
noticeable at Hannibal's Crossing, where
the bridge left barely 6 feet of clearance
above the water. Mac spotted a moose
that turned out to be a duck that turned
out to actually be a moose after all, and
the first bald eagle sighting of the trip
prompted a patriotic rendition of the Star
Spangled Banner.

When Big Island finally came in sight,
the gentlemen of Allagash II were there to
greet us as we pulled up on the Ouellettes
site on the left bank. No time was lost
getting to work on the bacon cheesesteak
dinner we had planned, and when Alex
caught the first fish of the trip Joey was
there to help clean it out before finally
the head was forcibly removed with the
prang; initial attempts to stab the beast
in the eye proved less successful than
anticipated. After dinner and cleaning
the Old Bay off everything in the K-wan,
it was bedtime once again on the river.
Day 4 - 7/2 - Black Pond:

Though the forecast from Allagash
II promised us 10 days of sunshine, we
were devastated to find that there was, in
fact, nothing but overcast drizzles to greet
us as we climbed out of the tents in the
morning. It was nearly 10 AM before the
heavy rain let up, and we made breakfast
sandwiches under the tarp while fighting
off bugs en masse. Winding down the
West Branch, we quickly found ourselves
at the mouth of Chesuncook Lake riding
tailwinds down the bank to the village.

Upon arriving at Chesuncook Village
we found the water was high enough
to tie up the boats in the water before
heading up to the Store in the Woods. We
stuffed ourselves with delicious wads
of fudge and guzzled down the famous
backcountry root beer before retreating
to our fleet and adventuring back across
the lake. Unlike the Allagash route to
the Mud Pond portage trail, we moved
back across the lake into the opening
of Black Pond. A cold cut lunch was
improved by the inclusion of avocados,
and we sat around the fire feeling stuffed
and lethargic for a while before deciding

we might as well get down to making
dinner.

Cheesy tuna with hot sauce was a
decent appetizer for the obscene amounts
of bacon we prepared and doled out for
trivia answers. T-Bone acknowledged
that he would save the lives of those
in the cabin before rescuing his fish, a
welcome relief for everyone, and we
finally decided to have a nice dessert
before a "Would You Rather?" book
entertained us into the evening. Conner
took the hot coals challenge, inspiring
the rest of the cabin to engage in the game
of Heat and Danger. While everyone
retreated to their tents, Joey, Parker,
Alex, and Dettmann pondered mortality
and swapped morbid stories around
the dying campfire. Finally the embers
were dying out and everyone was ready
to call it a night, anxiously awaiting the
legendary Horseraces the next day.
Day 5 - 7/3 - Round Pond

We woke up to find that the skies had
opened on us during the night, and we
started cooking up some corned beef
hash in the cool morning air. Several
long miles down the lake (including
Mac's extended swimming adventure),
we found ourselves snacking before
heading up Caucomgomoc Stream toward
the Horseraces. Though T-Bone tried
to insist that Will wanted a Snickers,
we knew better than to believe him. A
group of three fishermen in a motorboat
seemed perplexed that we were paddling
upstream, but their confusion was surely
amplified when the water began to rush
towards us and we responded by getting
out of the boats and pulling up the
rapids.

We ditched the paddles and started
walking up the Whitewater. Though
the water levels were as high here as
they had been elsewhere, it became a
true challenge to make it up the right
side of the river in areas where even
standing was near impossible. Strainers
and rogue canoes amplified the sense
of ridiculousness, as we watched boats
(some flipped) maneuver their way down
the rapids. Another snack was in order
before we reached the waterfall, and we
were soon faced with the challenge of
crossing the rushing water to the portage

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trail on the opposite bank. With some
help from throw ropes and aggressive
paddling, we were able to get the boats
over safely and quickly to carry them
around the falls.

The trending topics of the afternoon
became #throwropefails and

#betweenarockandahardplace, but we
made our way up the remainder of the
rapids without incident and finally found
ourselves at the dam. We carried around
to the other side to avoid getting in the
way of the Chewonki group camped at
the dam, stopping to enjoy some pep and
cheese before resuming our paddle. The
marsh leading up to Round Pond was
sufficiently packed with wildlife, and we
were lucky enough to see seven moose
(including two babies) and a handful
of bald eagles on our way through the
winding passage.

When Round Pond came into view
we paddled vigorously to the campsite,
where we found another Chewonki group
camped out. Quickly and quietly we
moved our gear past them to the upper
site and began preparing the Dank for
dinner, scarfed down rapidly as the sun
began its descent behind the horizon.
Tristan, Conner, and Parker tried their
hands at moonlight spear fishing before
bed, and we crawled happily into our
sleeping bags beaten, battered, stuffed,
and exhausted, looking forward to
another day of the Voyage and all the
good things that come with a resupply.
Day 6 - 7/4 - Little Allagash Falls
(Resupply #1):

We awoke to the sounds of Chewonki
preparing their canoes for the portage,
which involved tying paddles inside
the boats and other weird stuff. Their
resupply arrived around 9 as we were
preparing our Oreo cake pancakes, and
we were about done packing when
Walter and Dakota showed up to pack the
truck full of boats and campers. When he
returned, we loaded the truck up with the
re-packed coolers and wans and headed
off to the portage trail. In less than an
hour we had the boats packed and loaded
on Allagash Lake and stopped to enjoy
some fresh oranges before getting on the
water once more. Jay the ranger stopped
to say hi and suggested a campsite on the

lake, but we decided to play it by ear and
see how we were feeling after exploring
a little bit.

We paddled up the east side of the
lake toward the ice caves and hiked up
to check it out. The cave was cool and
damp and dark, just as we expected,
and the world seemed to be 100 degrees
hotter when we finally emerged. When
we finally got back on the water, we
cruised across the lake to the outlet and
began our passage down the rapid current
of Allagash Stream.

After a couple miles of fast-moving yet
leisurely Whitewater, we crossed Little
Round Pond and kept moving to Little
Allagash Falls. We found yet another
Chewonki group camped at the sprawling
grassy campsite and were forced to set
up camp in the dirty (but thankfully
shady) campsite upstream. We portaged
the boats below the falls and distributed
mail and care packages. Double downs
were grilled up around Joey's roaring
fire, and T-Bone experimented with
waterboarding before the group decided
to take a swim below the falls. T-Bone
then tried to lure and catch a rabbit with
cheesy munchies, and most of the cabin
got involved with a game of hot coals as
the light faded, with Nate Dawg finding
that he was a natural.
Day 7 - 7/5 - Gravel Beach:

We rose early and loaded the boats
quickly for the remainder of Allagash
Stream. Without a care in the world,
we struck out under the blue skies
and tantalizing Maine sunshine. This
optimism was short-lived for some,
however, as Mac experienced the first
flip of the trip going over one of the small
ledges after the falls. Gathering up gear
from the riverbanks as he floated down
the stream, we lost only two shirts and -
unfortunately - the prang. The boat was
waiting around one of the final corners
and, while all the gear was intact, the
K-wan had flooded and the toilet paper
reduced to a wet pulpy mass. Mourning
the loss of our blade and wiping
instruments, we proceeded to enter the
mighty Lake Chamberlain on our march
toward the famous Gravel Beach.

Numerous attempts to sail the lengths
of the lake were fruitless, impeded by

194

harrowing crosswinds, but we chased
a storm south until we reached our
destination. The men of Allagash III were
waiting for us on the shore, ready to make
trades with toilet paper and Snickers
and cards until the evening fell and they
prepared for their early wakeup. The
sound of canoes on the beach late in the
evening meant the arrival of some Wavus
counselors looking for a new stove, but
everyone was able to get some rest.
Day 8 - 7/6 - Gravel Beach (Rest Day):

Swimming, reading, and Pirates of
the Caribbean reenactments filled our
restful, sunny day on the lake. We had
the beach to ourselves and basked in the
glorious Maine summer day from sunrise
to sunset.

Day 9 - 7/7 - Thoroughfare:

Though we rose and contemplated
a second rest day, we decided it was
time to bid a fond and final farewell to
Gravel Beach. While prepping our gear
for departure, we saw a fleet of boats
glimmering in the distance; the cabin
sat in wait as the men of Long Voyage
III came closer and closer to shore,
anticipating card trading opportunities
and a chance to catch up with another
group. After bartering for peanut butter
and another roll of toilet paper, we said
our goodbyes and got back on the water.
Down the lake we continued until we
reached the end of Lake Chamberlain,
where we set up camp at Thoroughfare
(choosing grassy tent sites over Boy
Scout's ideal hammock setup). Our pizza
dinner was popular with everybody, but
it was the extra pie that caused the most
excitement.

With a contest in place, the group
readied their trip-lines and alliances
while the final pizza was being cooked.
Half the pie was promised to whoever
could first retrieve the football, while the
other half was to be awarded to whoever
could physically return the ball to the
counselors. T-Bone quickly retrieved
the punt into the lake, and the group
scrambled to find the counselors (hiding
in a tree). Tristan maintained a firm grip
while a group tackled him to the ground,
and after some scrapping and biting, Nate
Dawg was finally able to take the ball
into the woods for a victorious delivery.

195

As everyone digested and got ready for
bed, the only sounds were those of the
group stealing off to hunt crayfish by
moonlight.

Day 10 - 7/8 - Little Coffeelos:

Corned beef hash lined our bellies
as we prepared for a relentless paddle
to Webster Lake. First we had to cross
through Telos Lake, which took almost
no time at all, and we quickly reached
the dam at the end. We decided to
venture up and explore the abandoned
house above the dam, devastated to find
that the toilet paper inside had been
partially devoured by squirrels. Fearing
the imminent appearance of zombies, we
returned to the boats and carried them
efficiently over the dam to put in down
below.

While everyone had been warned that
Telos Cut was often the most underrated
section of Whitewater on the trip, it
was still a shock to find that four of the
six boats flipped almost immediately.
Though no damage was done, everyone
(save for Conner and Joey) had now
experienced a flip on the water and
floated down among the rocks and strong
current while gear was gathered at the
bottom of the stream. We regrouped at the
bottom and, after determining that all six
boats were ultimately intact, proceeded
down the lake. We arrived at Little
Coffeelos, the last campsite before the
infamous Webster Brook, and promptly
built a fire while taking stock of lost food.
Unfortunately the wannigans were all
waterlogged and most of the bread for the
trip was ruined. We dried out everything
we could and took the opportunity to tub
before making some Dank and going to
bed rather early.

Day 11 - 7/9 - Matagamon Wilderness:

What a beast of a day. We rose with
the sun, hoping that our early rise would
give us plenty of time to deal with the
legendary Webster Brook. A quick
breakfast and departure put us at the
mouth of the brook with time to spare,
and we were able to navigate the first
two thirds of the Whitewater without
incident. As we continued down the
river, the high water gave us some help
as the rapids became more serious. We
pulled off to scout the Indian Carry Class

III rapid, and were thrilled to find that
nobody flipped going down.

Though we ran it perfectly, when we
reached the fourth set of rapids there was
some cause for concern. Several boats
swamped and pulled off to the side,
but Tristan and Will's boat had flipped
completely and had to be dropped into
the current. Fearing the worst (a loaded
boat going down the massive Grand
Pitch), John and Mac took off down
the river to stop this potential tragedy.
Though they flipped on the fifth and final
set of rapids, John ran off down the bank
to find the canoe pinned precariously
on a rock face. Swimming over to hold
down the boat, we salvaged everything
while the rest of the boats bailed out
upstream.

With all six boats finally ready to go,
we continued down a couple hundred
yards to the portage trail and pulled
off the stream. With this Kieve rite of
passage completed, the guys quickly
made off down the trail with boats and
gear looking forward to some casual
sailing down Grand Lake Matagamon.

When we reached the lake, the
promises of Maine's prevailing westerly
winds were unfortunately unfounded.
We faced massive headwinds across
the lake and, though Joey and Conner
hadn't flipped, their boat was leaking
and water was continuing to slowly
trickle in. By the time we finally reached
the dam at the end of the lake, everyone
was exhausted and apprehensive about
another portage.

Thankfully we were able to carry the
boats around the dam fully loaded and in
mere minutes we were back on the water.
Floating down the East Branch of the
Penobscot River, we were at Matagamon
Wilderness in no time at all and ready
for all the amenities the campground had
to offer - namely toilet paper. We were
greeted by the boys of Bank II who had
just completed their camping in Baxter
State Park and were beginning their
journey down the East Branch, and the
cabin was surprised with fresh pizzas for
dinner.

Day 12 - 7/10 - Grand Pitch:

We rose early to make some delicious
breakfast sandwiches, with the extra

196

sandwich going to T-Bone as the winner
of another football retrieval contest. We
quickly got on the water and floated
down the river, passing a local resident
floating down on an innertube appearing
somewhat lost.

The day was marked by the repetition
of the Bank portages, which the cabin
found much easier now than they did two
years prior. Haskell Rock was a breeze,
and also marked the beginning of Mac's
apparent addiction to soloing canoes
down the portage trail. We hopped in the
water after the rapids and found some
choppy Whitewater before the second
was soon waiting for us around the bend.
Completed in a similarly quick manner,
we were back on the water and looking
forward to finishing the day at Grand
Pitch.

When we arrived, we found the same
Bank cabin at the campsite, and we
portaged the boats quickly before setting
up camp. As soon as camp was set up
and pep and cheese devoured, the guys
decided to head down to the falls and try
their hands at swimming. Once the ideal
eddy was located, it was simply a matter
of jumping in at the right angle and
swimming fiercely until the current was
no longer a threat. From there, everybody
took turns dipping their heads under
the falls and jumping off rocks into the
quick moving water. At the end of the
swimming excursion, we floated down
the somewhat rocky river until the boats
were in sight and we could hike back up
to the campsite.

After dinner both cabins gathered
around the campfire to share scary
stories, and we decided to have some
fun with the Bank kids by laying crosses
around the campsite and making spooky
noises. Though the use of headlamps
gave everyone away, we had a good
chuckle as Conner changed his pants
before bed.

Day 13 - 7/11 - Whetstone:

With only the gear to portage in the
morning, we had a quick breakfast before
heading down to the boats and getting
back in the water. We were on the river
for barely a quarter mile before the fourth
and final bank portage appeared. Though
the trail was longer and more complex

than any of the others on the East
Branch, we completed it with ease and
were soon celebrating the completion of
all the canoe portages on the water. Gash
paddling was in order, and for several
hours we floated down the river content
with our accomplishments.

When we finally arrived at Whetstone,
we pulled up on the beach and set up
camp before starting in on dinner. While
the chicken bacon Fank was being cooked,
Operation Bulbasaur left a smaller tent
inside a larger tent. Parker nearly sold
out the cabin for three Snickers, as
apparently "snitches get Snickers," but
we all shared a laugh and contempt for
the awful toilet facilities before packing
it in early and calling it a night.
Day 14 - 7/12 - Pine Grove:

With melancholy satisfaction in our
hearts we packed up the campsite and
prepared for our last day of canoeing
as Kieve campers. Whetstone posed no
issues as we hit the rapids immediately
after departing camp, and as we floated
down the river, additional Gash paddling
was utilized for maximum relaxation.
As we began to see signs of civilization
along the riverbank, the old train bridge
came into view and we naturally pulled
off to have some fun. Jumping from the
bridge was exciting for everybody, while
the rope swing proved mostly successful
but for Nate Dawg's tumble down the
dirt into the water. After spending close
to an hour splashing around above the
trip's final set of rapids, we found it time
to finally get back in the boats and head
downriver to scout Grindstone.

We made rocket fuel one last time
above the rapids before determining a
line for the first set of drops. Though John
and Nate Dawg had a flip, everything
was successfully recovered as the boats
pulled off to bail below the first (and
second) set of rapids. We had given up
Nathaniel's hat for lost when Mac saw it
floating in the river later on, and with a
mere 4-5 miles left on the river, the group
decided to literally float down and make
the most of their remaining time on the
water.

A Wavus Penobscot cabin was waiting
on the banks of Pine Grove to greet us,
and we pulled the boats up into the

197

campground before setting up camp. The
Bank boys were with us again, and both
cabins were pleasantly surprised when
original dinner plans were scrapped in
favor of surprise pizza delivery from
Millinocket. Ravenously devouring
the Hawaiian, cheese, and pepperoni
pizzas, everyone was feeling stuffed as
they were able to enjoy the comforts of
running water and mirrors for the first
time in a couple weeks. While the other
groups staying with us had an early
wakeup and brief paddle ahead of them,
we rested easy knowing that our morning
involved nothing but leisure and waiting
for a resupply. Though it was weird to
be done with paddling, the excitement
for van camping in Baxter State Park was
palpable throughout the evening and
everybody slept well.
Day 15 - 7/13 - Baxter State Park
(Resupply #2):

Reid arrived as we were finishing up
our blueberry pancakes this morning,
bringing with him an array of coolers,
dry food, mail, and care packages, along
with a van and trailer for the remainder
of our trip. We quickly packed up camp
and loaded everything onto the trailer
before hitting the open road and heading
north for Baxter.

When we arrived at the park, we
worked our way down the Park Tote
Road until we reached Nesowadnehunk
Field campground, where the men of
Long Voyage I were happily camped
out. We set up camp nearby, filled our
water bottles, and tore into care packages
before getting in the van again for a trip
to the water slides. Though crowded (it
was a weekend), we had fun slipping
and sliding and swimming around while
working on our tans without life jackets
for once. Some people read and some
people couldn't get out of the water -
though not for lack of trying.

When we finally returned to the
campsite, we got to work on some
delicious cheese steaks and tried not to
make a mess of the campsite. We talked
through plans for the hiking we wanted
to do, and tossed a football around until
quiet hours were strictly enforced and
everyone retired to their tents as the fire
died near the cook site.

Day 16 - 7/14 - Baxter State Park:

Though we had planned to sleep in,
the weather had different plans for our
day. Unbearable heat had everyone out
of their tents before 9 AM, and we made
some lazy breakfast sandwiches to fill
us up for our planned hike. When we
finally set off for Mt. OJI in the afternoon,
everyone had full water bottles and
excitement in their hearts. Unfortunately
the heat got the better of us, and about
halfway up the mountain we decided that
- having finished most of our water and
sweating bullets - we should turn back
rather than risk the vicious heat of the
sun above treeline. This was satisfactory,
as we migrated back to the campsite to fill
water and eventually back to the water
slides. Ledge Falls was as crowded as it
had been the day before, but we found a
spot on the side and set up camp before
loading up on sunscreen and splashing
around in the water more.

We returned to the campsite satisfied
with the day, and started work on an
early dinner of bacon cheeseburgers
before bed. Everyone was in their tents
before the sun was down, as the day
ahead would be long and begin early.
Day 17 - 7/15 - Northern Outdoors:

We rose at midnight. Silent under the
light of the moon, we filled water bottles
and drove to the Abol trailhead, beginning
our ascent of the mighty Katahdin at 1:30
AM. We moved slowly and deliberately

198

to avoid any mishaps, and proceeded
up the mountain with silent breaks for
snacks and water. We arrived at Baxter
Peak and had summited around 4 AM
with some time to kill before the sun
actually rose. We stayed moving and
got some pictures around the sign as we
waited in the cold, anxious for the sun
to rise.

As the sky grew lighter and lighter, the
scene below us was truly surreal. After
some time spent appreciating the sun
on the horizon, it was finally time to
begin our descent. We passed some later-
starting groups on the trail en route down
the mountain, and finally made it down
to the bottom in what must have been
record time. Excepting the 70 minutes
spent at the summit, the hiking itself took
just under 5 hours total. An impressive
feat, to be sure, and when we finally
returned to Nesowadnehunk Field, the
gentlemen of Long Voyage III were only
just rising to contemplate breakfast.
Exhausted, we alternated between casual
naps and Oreo cake pancake making
before packing up the campsite and
returning once more to Ledge Falls to
swim away all the sweat. The heat rose to
90 degrees by the afternoon, reminding
us just how fortunate we were to have
finished our hike before the heat became
too gnarly. Finally we hopped in the van
and headed to Northern Outdoors, where
we set up camp and scarfed down a final
trip dinner of Dank before heading back,
exhausted, to and early night of sleep.
Day 18 - 7/16 - Raft & Return:

We rose before 6 AM to make breakfast
sandwiches and take dovm camp before
a day of excitement and Whitewater
rafting. By 7 we had made our way to the
lodge, anxious and excited for the Class
V rapids that awaited us. As we piled
into the bus with our paddles, helmets,
life jackets, and booties, we split into two
groups and waited to get in the water. As
we grabbed the rafts and carried them
down, it became immediately evident
that this Long Voyage group was better
suited to paddling-related activities than
many other rafters. The two Class V
rapids. Exterminator and the Crib works,
were exciting and nobody flipped or fell
out - always a good sign. The water level

of 1990 cubic feet per second was fairly
low, and though boats ended up stuck on
rocks at times we had a blast paddling
down the river.

Lunch on the water was delicious, as
we feasted on an array of steak, salmon,
chicken, and rice. Back on the water, one
of our rafts flipped going down "Lose
Your Lunch Falls," but there were no
injuries and everyone's spirits remained
high. We stopped at some natural
waterslides along the river and continued
down the remainder of the Whitewater.
After returning to the lodge tired and
satisfied, we watched the slideshow
and highlight reel before hopping in the
van and making our way south toward
camp.

A lengthy stop in Bangor at the
world famous Happy China Buffet was
significant for its role in Dettman's
prizewinning opportunity to eat first,
but fortune cookies reading "Use your
instincts now" and "What are you waiting
for? Start moving now" sent us scurrying
off. Parker made another pit stop on his
way out the door, and once in the van a
Taylor Swift sing-along occupied us the
rest of the way to camp.

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Long Voyage III
The Long Voyage
Will Hackett, HBC

Day One: June 30, 2013:

The men of Long Voyage III woke up
this morning to just another cloudy day
at camp. For everyone around us, it was
just a fun Sunday breakfast, but we had
other things in mind. We had our eyes set
on the next 18 days of our Long Voyage.
After breakfast, we loaded up the van
with our gear, and said goodbye to our
home on the West Neck Road.

After a full day of traveling, Ben
Swanson, our driver, dropped us off
at The Birches Campground on the
southern coast of Moosehead Lake.
After the van left, we set up camp and
prepped the boats for the next day, then
Ben Dixon fired up the stove and cooked
some delicious steak bombs, with the
perfect combination of spice and cheese.
Once dinner had been cleaned up, we all
headed to bed, as we knew the next day
would be full of adventure.
Day Two: July 1, 2013:

We awoke around 4:45 a.m., to a
peaceful suru:ise on Moosehead Lake on
the first morning of our journey. As we
slowly rolled out of our tents, and started
the morning routine, all the dudes were
highly anticipating our 8-mile paddle
across Moosehead Lake to Seboomook
Point. We gobbled down a quick breakfast
and loaded the boats. The weather was
slightly cloudy, as we paddled north on
Moosehead, but the sun fought hard and
every once in a while we would catch
some rays.

After a few hours of getting used
to being in canoes, we arrived at our
campsite, just in time for lunch. The kids
quickly set up camp, and eased into the
rest of the afternoon by cooking up some
grilled cheese and bacon with a side of
tomato soup. After lunch we decided to
go for a swim, Ben Dixon was first in the
water and discovered some sharp rocks
in a shallow part of the lake, which made
us decide to swim on the other side of
the campsite. After a couple hours and
a few naps, the dinner crew, headed
up by Lav and Patrick, cooked up some
delicious chicken sandwiches with

bacon, swizz cheese, and sweet baby
rays. After dinner, we looked off down
the lake towards our big day ahead. The
North East Carry.
Day Three: July 2, 2013:

It was another early morning for the
men of Long Voyage III. We were up
and at-em around 4:30. Packed up camp
quickly and got in the boats to enjoy
some Pop-Tarts while we cruised on over
to the start of the Carry. As we pulled our
boats out of the water, the guys began to
state their claims on boats, as many were
eager to solo the Carry.

The portage is a little over 2 miles, and
continues down a straight road. Chase
Clarke, Gordon Johnson, Patrick Friend,
and Nick Favaloro all were successful in
soloing the portage, and before long we
were back in our boats in the West Branch
of the Penobscot River. With Moosehead
Lake and the North East Carry behind us,
the boys headed down the river towards
our campsite at Big Island. Eventually
we turned a corner just in time to see the
boys of Gash 111 putting their boats in at
Hannibal's Crossing.

Knowing that we had now entered
into a race for the better campsite on
Big Island, the men put the boats in
gear, and hustled up past the boys from
Gash III. Eventually, the race turned into
a classic game of Rock, Paper, Scissors
between both HBCs. After a stressful
game, we reigned victorious and strolled
down easily to the big part of Big Island.
Once we arrived, we set up camp, and
started in on dinner. For dinner tonight
we had BBQ bacon cheese burgers. After
finishing up dinner, and spending some
time swapping stories with the Gash III
boys, the men of Voyage III headed to
bed exhausted from a long day.
Day 4: July 3, 2013:

We woke up around 7:30 this morning,
and toasted bagels for breakfast. After
breakfast we jumped on the water and
paddled a few miles to Chesuncook
Lake. When we got on the lake we took a
little detour to a place called The Store.
The Store is a little porch of a house,
where you can buy homemade fudge
and root beer for a reasonable price. We
all enjoyed our pre-lunch dessert, and
quickly were back on the water, because

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we had a good wind and Harris Clark
thought it might be a good idea to try and
sail. Unfortunately we got out into the
middle of the lake and the wind decided
to give up on us so we were forced to
continue paddling. We paddled off of
Chesuncook and towards Black Pond.

Eventually we arrived at Canvas Dam,
set up camp, chewed down some PB &
J with honey, and began to settle in for
the afternoon. The weather was beautiful
and Harris Clark, Patrick Friend, and Jack
Davenport decided to do some fishing.
They caught several decently sized
"chubs", and Gordon Johnson cooked
everyone up a small snack. After dinner,
Lav, Chase, and Brandon made a roaring
fire which we all enjoyed before heading
to bed, knowing tomorrow would be a
long day.

Day 5: July 4, 2013:

While the rest of the country was
preparing themselves for the festivities
of the Fourth, the men of Long Voyage
III were up and on the move before 5
a.m. today. We boiled some water and
ate up some oatmeal. Once everyone had
finished, we loaded the boats and started
paddling towards the Horse Race Rapids,
which were only a few miles north. As
we were paddling, we encountered some
light headwinds, which we battled for
an hour or two and finally arrived at the
mouth of the Horse Races.

This is one of the coolest/hardest parts
of the trip because the Horse Races are
a long stretch of rapids where we have
to drag our canoes upstream. On this
particular adventure upstream, the
water level was extremely high, to a
point where every once in a while we
would find ourselves swimming up
stream with a boat in one hand, trying
to find a foothold. Eventually, we found
ourselves face to face with about an 8-
foot waterfall.

We finally found our way up and over
the falls, and continued for another 20
minutes before we finally came around
and saw the dam! After a quick portage
we were off towards Round Pond. Along
the way to our campsite, we had a really
rare moose sighting. This was no ordinary
moose sighting however; off in the
distance we could see 8 different moose!

We were all so amazed and impressed by
the size of such a great animal. That being
said, we were a little discouraged when
one of the males felt Nick Favaloro and
Brandon got a little too close and snorted
water at them. Shortly after our great
experience, we arrived at Round Pond
and prepared for our re-supply the next
day! After a failed attempt at Mexican
fiesta rice and veggies, we all went for
a paddle out on the lake to sing songs
about America, and have a mini 4th of
July celebration. After we paddled back
in, we all headed to bed looking forward
to our resupply the next morning!
Day 6: July 5, 2013:

We woke up around 8 am this morning,
as there was no real rush. We fired up the
stove, and made some M&M pancakes
for breakfast. After breakfast we prepped
all of our gear for the resupply and
then began the waiting game. While we
waited, we played cards, or read books,
and finished letters home. Around 11
a.m., Robby Ford met up with us at the
Round Pond Campsite and gave us our
re-supply.

Part of the resupply is an extremely
tough portage to Allagash Lake. The
portage is about a mile long, and we had
to portage the next 9 days' worth of gear.
The portage seemed to take forever. The
terrain was muddy, the bugs came from
all angles, and the heat was relentless. At
one point, Brandon Hawley and Harris
Clark found a canoe cart, which they
loaded up with paddles and a cooler
to haul off down the trail. After several
hours we found ourselves at the end of
the portage trail with all of our gear.

Once at the campsite, we set up camp,
and began to make some delicious steak
bombs. While dinner was being cooked
and cleaned, some of the guys enjoyed
the beautiful setting that Allagash Lake
has to offer. Patrick Friend went out for
a paddle to do some fishing, while Chase
Clarke and Gordon Johnson went for
a swim. After dinner, some of the guys
went out on a sunset paddle with Nick
Favs and spent a good amount of time
in the boats just hanging and chatting
quietly on the lake. We were soon off in
our tents, getting our much-deserved rest
after a hard day's work.

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Day 7: July 5, 2013:

This morning, we woke up at 2:45 a.m.!
As we quietly snuck out of our tents, we
prepared ourselves for a quick hike. We
left the campsite around 3, and headed
towards Allagash Mountain. It was a
fairly steep hike up the mountain, but
we hustled to the top and arrived with
time to spare. While we waited patiently
for the sun to rise, we explored the dimly
lit summit of the mountain. One of the
coolest features of the mountain is the
fire tower located at the summit. On
top of the tower is a round table with a
map of the surrounding area, which we
had done and also what we were going
to do. From the tower we were able to
see almost our entire trip, which was
really cool! After about 15 minutes, the
sun began to rise and we all watched in
amazement as the sky began to change
colors, listened to the world waking up
around us.

We then had a quick stroll back to
our campsite, where we all retreated to
our tents to take a nap before breakfast.
Around 9 a.m., we woke up and made
ourselves some delicious sausage, egg
and cheese sandwiches, and slowly
packed up camp before heading out for
the day. Once on the water, we noticed
some strong winds blowing across the
lake towards the northeast corner of the
lake. We headed northwest, however,
and after about 5 miles arrived at the Ice
Caves. The men all jumped out of the
boats in excitement and went into the
caves to explore. After the ice caves we
got back in our boats and headed east on
Allagash Lake towards Allagash Stream.

Once we got out into the middle of
the lake, we had strong tail winds. We
decided that today had just become the
most ideal day to try out our sailing
skills. We tied the boats together and
hoisted our tarp in the air, not really
knowing what to expect. Then all of a
sudden a big gust of wind grabbed our
tarp and shot all of our boats across the
lake together. We flew across Allagash
Lake, covering 4 miles in less than 30
min, having to stop occasionally because
we ended up going so fast that water
began to flow over the side of our boats.
We then ended up in Allagash Stream,

and had a short three-mile paddle to our
campsite, encountering a few rapids,
eventually ending up at Little Allagash
Falls. We spent the rest of the afternoon
playing in the falls, and had a great
chicken sandwich dinner. We quickly
headed to bed after dinner because we
had a big day ahead of us.
Day 8: July 7, 2013:

We woke up around 5 again this
morning, packed up camp and had a quick
Pop-Tart breakfast before getting back on
the river. As the lazy river turned a few
corners, the speed of the water picked
up and we found ourselves going over
several really intense rapids with 2-3 foot
drops in them. All of our boats handled
these drops really well. After the stream,
we floated onto Chamberlain Lake,
one of the longest lakes that we would
paddle. We were fortunate to encounter
tailwinds for most of our journey down
Chamberlain today, and found ourselves
15 miles later at Gravel Beach just in
time to see our fellow trippers in Long
Voyage II.

As the boys caught up and shared
stories of the trip so far, we made
chicken quesadillas for lunch. The rest
of the day was spent swimming in the
lake and relaxing after a huge morning.
Eventually Long Voyage II left, and we
were left at Gravel Beach by ourselves,
knowing the next few days leading up to
Webster Brook would be fairly relaxed.
Day 9: July 8, 2013:

We woke up to a slightly cloudy
sky this morning, but the men of Long
Voyage III were allowed to sleep in after
a hard-working past few days. Some of
the crew woke up earlier and started
a nice morning fire, and as the kids
slowly started rolling out of their tents,
Patrick cooked up bacon and bagels for
everyone. The rest of the day consisted
of reading, naps, and long conversations.
Around 3 p.m. we decided, after much
debate, to go to our next campsite (Boy
Scout) which was about a 4-mile paddle
away. After a casual paddle full of tricky
riddles and a few funny jokes, we arrived
at our campsite just north of the ranger
station at Chamberlain Bridge. Once
camp was set up, Ben Dixon made us
some pesto pasta with bacon bits, which

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was delicious. We also had another large
fire, which was constructed by Chase
Clarke and Brandon Hawley. After sitting
around the fire for a while and listening
to stories from everyone, we headed to
our tents.

Day 10: July 9, 2013:

We woke up around 8 a.m. this
morning, and enjoyed a breakfast of
snacks and oatmeal before heading
out around 10. We paddled the rest of
Chamberlain, and underneath the bridge,
on to Telos Lake. Once on the lake we
started to encounter some strong winds
but we pushed forward and eventually
pulled off at Field Campsite and enjoyed
some PB & Js for lunch. After lunch, we
pushed back off and paddled a short
distance to the dam at Webster Stream.
We portaged around the stream, everyone
taking their fair share of gear and before
we knew it, we were on Webster Stream
traveling to Little Coffeelos located about
half way across Webster Lake.

Once we got to our campsite, we set up
camp and began to think about the next
day we were going to have. Everyone
headed to bed after a filling beef stew
dinner, knowing that our next day would
be full of adventures and was going to be
the longest day of the trip so far.
Day 11: July 10, 2013

We woke up around 4:30 a.m. to get an
early start on what we knew would be
one of the longest days of the trip. After
a quick paddle across Webster Lake, we
reached the beginning of Webster Brook.
Everyone was excited for what promised
to be a challenging day of Whitewater
paddling.

The rapids started off slowly, but
quickly escalated. Soon enough, the men
of Long Voyage III were being tested by
the most difficult rapids Kieve trips have
to offer. They performed admirably well,
putting to use all the paddling skills they
have acquired during their Kieve careers.
Other than a slight hiccup on the Indian
Carry rapids, where Gordon Johnson and
Greg got pinned on a rock, the journey
through the Webster Brook rapids
went smoothly, and proved extremely
memorable and exciting.

After finishing Webster Brook, we
began the seemingly endless trek across

Grand Lake Matagamon. Much to our
dismay, we were met with 15 mph
headwinds. The 10-mile paddle across
Grand Lake Matagamon proved to be as
difficult as any portage on the trip. The
cabin gritted it out though, and trucked
across the lake at an impressive speed.
After finally completing the paddle and
crushing the portage around the dam, we
were treated with a stay at Matagamon
Campgrounds, a popular campsite among
the counselors and kids. Overall, the day
was challenging but memorable.
Day 12: July 11, 2013:

This was our first day on the East
Branch of the Penobscot River. After days
upon days of lake paddling, canoeing
along a river was a nice change of pace.
We saw a couple moose, and many bald
eagles along the river bank, and we were
grateful to have a current working in our
favor. The weather was picture-perfect
(yet again), which made for an enjoyable
day.

Additionally, Day 12 was packed full
of portages and rapids. We went over
the fun Stair Falls rapids, and the rips
after the Haskell Rock and Pond Pitch
portages. After gaining experience from
our Webster Brook day, the cabin crushed
these smaller sets of rapids. Experience
also proved helpful during the day's 2.5
portages. The cabin finished the portages
quickly and efficiently.

We stayed the night at Grand Pitch
Falls. The falls were extremely fun to
observe and read next to. We took our
dinner of Mexican fiesta rice out to the
base of the falls and stared at awe at the
moving water.
Day 13: July 12, 2013:

Just a quarter mile into Day 13, we were
greeted by Hulling Machine Portage, the
last portage of the trip. A bunch of kids
faced the challenge, and soloed their
first portage ever. With a great group
effort, we were able to absolutely crush
this portage: Long Voyage III ended their
canoe-portaging careers on a high note.

After the portage, we had a relatively
relaxing day. We floated down the
beautiful Penobscot River, keeping an
eye out for wildlife sightings and soaking
in the excellent weather. We pulled up
to our campsite, Whetstone, in the early

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afternoon. After a full day in the sun,
most of the cabin took a nap and/or read
until dinnertime. Recognizing that we
only had one day of paddling left on
the trip, we built a great campfire and
reminisced about our time of the river
thus far.

Day 14: July 13, 2013:

We left Whetstone campsite in the
midmorning, and quickly thereafter
navigated our way through the Whetstone
Rapids. Whetstone was a relatively tame
set of rapids for our experienced group of
paddlers, but it was still a fun way to start
off our day. After that, we had many miles
of river paddling. Yet again, the weather
cooperated; there was barely a cloud in
the entire sky. We floated downstream at
a comfortable pace, savoring our last day
on the water.

After three hours of paddling, we
reached Grindstone Rapids. We took a
quick break to have lunch and scout the
upper portion of the rapids, then we took
off and flew through the white water. Not
a single boat flipped. The men of Long
Voyage III navigated their way through
the rapids like the expert paddlers that
they had now become. After our satisfying
experience on Grindstone, we floated
downstream at a comfortable pace until
we reached Pine Grove campsite.
Day 15: July 14, 2013:

We started today very slowly,
expecting to be resupplied at 9 a.m., we
woke up and had some pancakes and
CBH for breakfast. When we realized our
resupply was running a little behind, we
began to play cards, write letters, and
catch up on whatever needed to be done.
Eventually Robby and Reid showed up
to Pine Grove, took our canoes, gave us a
van with all our new gear, and sent us on
our way to Baxter State Park. It took us a
few stops, and about two hours to get to
our campsite at Nesowadnehunk Field.

Shortly after arriving, we set up camp
and headed off to the water slides which
were only a few miles down the road.
While everyone enjoyed the slides, Jack
Davenport had an unfortunate injury,
which sort of killed the mood of the
cabin. However, later that night when
Jack had recovered, we cooked up steak
bombs again and celebrated his return.

We headed to bed relatively early
after enjoying our time around a small
campfire, and looking up at the beautiful
sky.

Day 16: July 15, 2013:

We had a great morning of hanging out
and relaxing, eating meat, egg and cheese
sandwiches and preparing for our long
mile-long hike to Big Niagara Falls. After
breakfast we loaded up the vans, filled
up our water bottles and headed to Daicy
Pond. We basically ran down the small
section of the Appalachian Trail to the
waterfall, and before we knew it we were
there. Once everyone knew what was
safe and what to avoid, the dudes spent
the next few hours jumping off rocks,
sliding off the falls, and even venturing
underneath the roaring falls. Gordon,
Chase, and Josh were big trailblazers in
many of the adventurous activities.

After a while we headed back to our
campsite, where we settled in and had
some veggie steam boats with bacon
before spending the rest of the evening
playing Kan Jam, and CASH. After a long
time playing games we headed to bed for
one of the last times on our trip.
Day 17: July 16 2013:

We woke up around 9 a.m. today, and
enjoyed Oreo pancakes for breakfast.
After breakfast we all packed up our stuff
and prepared to load it into the trailer,
but first we decided that we were going
to go conquer a mountain, and we headed
off towards Double Top Mountain.

Double Top is about a 3-mile hike
up, on a pretty smooth trail. Josh Riley
led the charge up the mountain, and we
made fairly good time getting to the top
and having a great view of all the huge
mountains around us. After enjoying
some celebratory Goldfish and a great
view, we headed back down the van.

Once back at the campsite, we loaded
all of our gear into the van and put
Baxter State Park in our rear view mirror
as we headed to Northern Outdoors
campground, the place where we would
finish our Long Voyage in the Maine
woods.

Day 18: July 17, 2013:

We woke up at 6 a.m. this morning,
and packed up our gear for the final
time. After our final Pop-Tart breakfast.

205

we headed to the lodge and prepared
for our last big adventure. We were
quickly ushered into a van and off down
the Golden Road which is the longest
privately owned road in the country.
We spent the rest of the day Whitewater
rafting down the West Branch of the
Penobscot River. We enjoyed a fulfilling
lunch of steak, chicken, river rice, and
pasta salad, and then headed back to the
Northern Outdoors Lodge to conclude
our day.

Once back at the lodge, we quickly
changed clothes and loaded the van eager
to return home to the West Neck Road.
We drove back to Kieve, and arrived just
in time to be welcomed back at flag by
the entire camp except for Maine Trails
whom we would see the next day. The
men of Long Voyage III had returned
home safe, not quite the same as when
they had left, with tons of stories and
experiences to share for the rest of their
lives.

Maine Trails I
Timmy Macrae, HBC

June 27 (Hog Island):

After a few initial false starts, Maine
Trails I departed for our journey while
cabin row campers watched in awe
during G-swim. We paddled by the
rafts while chanting "bom-da-ley-ley",
announcing our exit. After paddling a
short way, Simon and Liam realized that
there was something v^ong with their
rudder and their boat had no assisted
steering. Already Simon and Liam
demonstrated their coping abilities,
hardly even mentioning the hindrance.
Luckily once we arrived at Damariscotta
Mills, T.J. was able to bring us a boat
with a working rudder and also brought
the luxurious wag-bags that were enjoyed
thoroughly throughout the trip.

We bumped some beats on the way to
the Kieve Bremen landing and busted out
the brand new dragon fly grills to cook
up some warm cold cuts. T.J. left with
the van and the group finally pushed
off into Muscongus Bay. We quickly
paddled to our first scheduled campsite
at Hog Island. Everyone was eager to set
up the brand-new Marmot Limelite tents

on the tent platforms proudly built by
Kieve Wavus Education in 2011. For the
first night, we prepared an overwhelming
meal of delicious Philly cheesesteaks.
After devouring dinner, Timmy re-
introduced the boys to the classic Kieve
card game called President. As night was
falling, the campers gathered firewood
and created a nice campfire between the
high and low tide lines on the beach of
Hog Island. Everyone returned to their
tents at a reasonable hour, anticipating
the next day of the trip.
June 28 (Hog Island):

The boys of Maine Trails woke up
to a thick fog and a light, but constant,
drizzle that reduced visibility to around
fifty feet. So, needless to say, the boys of
Maine Trails I had to stay put. But the
boys made do with a game of President.
During the game, the campers agreed
that if someone were to be in the bottom
position 3 times in a row, they would
have to swim around an island thirty
feet offshore. Unfortunately for Harry
Ellsworth, it did not take long until he
was in the water. Fortunately for him, he
had a towel and his cabin mates warmed
him up with plenty of pats on the back.

After another hour of President, it
was time for lunch. So Charlie Lesko
and Bill Coyle walked down the beach
and collected mussels, which we then
boiled and cooked in the pan with Cajun
seasoning and crushed red pepper flakes.
Will von Weise and Harry Ellsworth
spearheaded the cooking of the chicken
bacon ranch sandwiches. After this filling
dinner, the boys all collected firewood so
that they would be able to have a bonfire
on the beach that night. As we all sat
around the fire we were filled with both a
sense of excitement and anticipation for
the weeks we had ahead of us as a cabin.
After the fire had been extinguished, the
boys headed off to their tents to get some
much-needed rest for the long day of
paddling the next day.
June 29 (Otter Island):

More fog!!! Despite the thick fog, the
boys of Maine Trails I decided that the
crossing to Otter Island was necessary.
After debating whether or not to make
moves all the way to Otter over some
fresh oysters, the boys decided to pack

206

up the boats and go for it. We began
the paddle on a south bearing, hugging
the coast of Hog and then Louds Island.
About a mile and a half up Louds Island
we took an east bearing into the fog. After
paddling for what seemed to be an hour
without seeing land, we decided to turn
around and head back to Louds because
we thought that we may have been lost.
About 10 minutes later we decided
that this retreat was unnecessary, so
we courageously headed back out into
the ocean on an eastern bearing that we
thought would lead us somewhere close
to Otter Island. That eastern bearing led
us all the way into Friendship Harbor,
and we ended up having to paddle an
extra couple of miles. After some more
confusion caused by the fog, we finally
found Otter Island.

As we were unloading the boats,
the fog lifted and the sun momentarily
beamed down upon us. We savored the
half hour of sunshine, and figured that
it was a good omen for the next day. We
cooked up a delicious meal of pesto pasta
for dinner and everyone went to sleep
with a full belly.
June 30 (Otter Island):

Safely on Otter in another bank of
fog, the boys woke up late and leisurely
made M&M pancakes. Yum! Even
though the sun was not out, the weather
was still warm, and as always the boys
were looking to make the most out of
the day. Coybear proved his prowess at
acrobatics doing stylish gainers off of
the Otter Island ledges. The rest of the
cabin quickly followed suit and had a
blast swimming in the Otter Island Bay.
Bubbles, Lesko, and Noah created a
legendary Frolf course around Otter that
may or may not be used in next year's
Kieve Frolf Tour.

Tuna was on the menu for lunch, but
after realizing we had extra cheese we
busted out the Dragonfly stoves and made
scrumptious tuna-melts. Unfortunately
when it was time for dinner we realized
that we didn't have enough fresh water
for pasta so Lesko innovatively decided
to use salt water to cook the pasta
alfredo. It was probably one of the worst
meals on the trip. Luckily we were being
resupplied the next day, and everyone's

bellies were mostly filled from the tuna-
melts.

July 1 (Rock Island):

To make the 10 a.m. resupply, the
cabin was up by 6 and the boats were
loaded and ready to launch by 7:00. The
fog had finally lifted, which made for an
easy, stress-free, paddle to the Friendship
landing where T.J. would be picking us
up. While we waited, we munched on
Pop-Tarts, and the boys played Frisbee
while Timmy and Addison contemplated
the Deer Isle map. T.J. arrived right on
time and the boats and gear were quickly
loaded onto the trailer. The resupply
came with all our mail, fresh fruit,
and jerky that Walter and Robbie had
made in the Buck for us. On the way to
Stonington, T.J. stopped at a gas station
and Timmy and Addison ran in to buy
some magazines and soda for the cabin.

There was little fog until our boats
touched the water. As we were loading up ,
a bank of fog rolled in. Now experienced
fog paddlers, Maine Trails set a bearing
for Rock Island and got there with no
problem. Rock Island is a beautiful small
island, not even a mile from the harbor.
The sand beach made pulling up the
boats an easy task. During the unloading,
vacuumed sealed burger patties were
spotted, along with the buns and bacon
needed to make a trip favorite, bacon
cheeseburgers. A short grassy trail led
to a beautiful clearing which contained
3 perfect tent sites. The campers were
finally able to set up a tarp that they
could be proud of, and the cooking of the
burgers quickly commenced. Delicious.
July 2 (Rock Island):

We finally woke up to good weather
and after a quick breakfast, we hopped in
the boats and departed for a day paddle.
We brought our empty water jugs with
us and stopped by Stonington to fill
them up. After that, we went to Green
Island and hiked around, exploring the
mystifying semi-mountainous island.

When we finally returned to our
campsite late in the afternoon we were
astonished to find that it had been
vandalized. A seal skull was found
on top of a pike in the middle of the
campsite and ketchup was squirted all
over the side of the counselor's tent.

207

The log book had been ripped up, and
pages were scattered throughout the
campsite. In the remaining pages of the
log book the vandals left us notes written
in the ketchup, "I'm watching you" and
"watch out". In response to this strange
vandalism the cabin decided that it was
our duty to not only clean up what the
vandals had left, but the entire island as
well. After our community service, we
rewarded ourselves with a divine meal
of shell pasta and marinara sauce.
July 3 (Russ) Chewonki Campground:

Waking up on Rock Island, the crew
fashioned a filling breakfast of toasted
bagels with cream cheese. Prior to
packing up the campsite, Maine Trails I
departed the island and went looking for
a good place to relax. Having sunshine
for the first time in days, the prime place
to stop was "Mystic Beach", a small
sand strip connecting two small specs of
rock at low tide. Pulling up the kayaks,
the men of MT I applied the necessary
amounts of sunscreen to produce a deep
bronze. Harry, boasting his tanning
ability, applied his very own tanning
oil, whilst claiming that he "got tan on
Allagash."

A tasty lunch of rocket fuel (PB and J's
with Snickers) was scarfed down in the
hot sun. A cliff jumping session on the
opposite side of the island was held. Just
as he was backing up to huck the cliff,
Coyle stepped on his priceless Ray-Ban
sunglasses, shattering the lens. That did
not stop him, however, as he went on to
huck a well-rounded jump.

Upon leave of "Mystic Beach" the
crew set out for Russ Island. The gear
was brought above the tide-line, and
camp was set up. Timmy and Addison
posted their tent on a ridge overlooking
the other two tents and the cooking area,
while the rest of MT I scavenged for a
flat surface to pitch the tents on. Setting
up an extremely well-done rain-tarp,
dinner commenced. Meatball subs were
on the menu, and the boys were hungry
for some meat to fill their bellies after a
reasonably-paced paddle to the island.

The sun was setting over the hill, so
the men of MT I set out for a leisurely
walk to the other side of the island. A
small clearing through the thick trees

208

provided an excellent view to wrap up
the daylight hours to the day. Upon
arrival back at the campsite, an exciting
and competitive game of Presidents was
played. Noticing that the night was clear,
the entire crew headed onto the beach
to lie out and watch the stars. Countless
satellites and shooting stars were spotted
in the bright night sky. MT I retired to
their tents to rest until the morning.
July 4 (Russ) Chewonki Campground:

After staying up so late the night before,
Timmy and Addison decided to let the
cabin sleep in until around 10 a.m. We
woke up slower than usual and packed
up the boats to leave Russ. We b-lined
for Hell's Half-Acre, hoping to claim the
popular camping destination as our own
for the night. Much to our chagrin there
was already a family vacationing there
and they had no plans of leaving.

After leaving Hell's Half-Acre we found
a phenomenal swimming and hang out
spot between Camp and Devil Island. We
hung out there for a bit and then decided
that we needed to find a place to stay.
After getting rejected from two more
busy campsites, our only option was to
go back to Russ. We set up the campsite
again and cooked up pasta twists with
alfredo for dinner.

July 5 (Russ) Separate Campground:

"Oh my god, my sunburn!" said Harry
as Maine Trails I was getting out of
their tents. Overnight Harry's sunburn
had began to bubble and immediate
evacuation protocol ensued. Addison
took Bubbles into town where Tyler Hill
met up with them to bring Harry back to
camp. Meanwhile Timmy and the boys
went swimming off of Russ and played
games of President waiting for Addison's
return.

When Addison returned in the
afternoon, the boats were already
packed and we headed out to find a
new campsite. The first two islands
we checked were once again occupied.
Addison, however, remembered a secret
campsite on the other side of Russ where
he stayed during his Trails trip as a
camper. The campsite was in a clearing
with large slabs of rock protruding out of
the hillside. Perfect tent sites lay beneath
the pine trees on beds of pine needles.

We cooked up some pasta and the extra
bag of rice and fell asleep early so that
we could get up in the morning for our
resupply/transfer to hiking.
July 6th (Leeman Brook Lean-to):

The men of Maine Trails 1 woke up
early on Russ Island in order to be picked
up in Stonington Harbor by the legendary
Kieve bus driver "The One." After a quick
breakfast of snacks and breakfast bars,
the group shoved off of the island with
unusual speed, led by Noah and Lesko.
When we arrived at the boat landing. The
One was already waiting with backpacks,
hiking boots, and coolers full of new
food for the transfer to the Hundred Mile
Wilderness. Eager to get on the trail, we
cleaned out the boats and emptied our
hatches of what were no doubt some of
the rankest smelling wag bags in Maine
Trails history.

Once the boats were on the trailer, we
left the Stonington Public Boat Landing
bumping a collection of classic Kieve
tracks by Kanye, Kendrick, and Kid
Cudi. On the way to the Hundred Mile
Wilderness trailhead in Monson, we
learned that we would be reunited early
with our long-lost cabinmate Harry
"Bubbles" Ellsworth at the Wal-Mart
in Newport. When we got to Wal-Mart,
Robby Ford was waiting with Harry, who
was set up to hike the trail wearing a
trifecta of fanny packs so as not to irritate
his sunburn. We feasted on a quick meal
of cold cuts, berries, and soda and hit the
road again, excited to start the hike. We
arrived at the trailhead at about 3:00 PM
and finished off the last of our enormous
lunch.

Saying goodbye to The One, we
powered on to the trail at a breakneck
pace set by Addison. The group stayed
in a tight formation and was able to make
good time, putting all three miles behind
us in just under two hours. When we
arrived at Leeman Brook, we made camp
near the site's rickety lean-to and Charlie,
Noah, Addison, and Timmy set up a
hammock city. After some unpacking,
the boys started cooking up a sumptuous
chicken bacon ranch dinner that filled
our stomachs and lightened our packs just
as the sun was setting. Knowing that the
next day's hike to Wilson Valley Lean-to

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would be a much harder day, we played
a few quick rounds of "President" before
bed - all of which left either Lesko or
Noah as the game's winners. We formed
our tent groups before the mosquitoes
could eat us alive and called it a night
at around 9:00 PM, Wheezy, Liam, and
Butters in one tent and Harry, Noah, Bill,
and Lesko in the other.
July 7 (Wilson Valley Lean-to):

Timmy woke up the men of MT I at
7:00, and even though we were hoping to
get on the trail by 8:00, the group ended
up breaking down camp a little too
slowly. Once everything was packed up,
we had a quick trail breakfast of cereal
bars that we would come to know VERY
well over the next eleven days. Led by
Liam and Coybear, the group hit the trail
for what would be a sunny seven and a
half mile day. After a relatively flat three
and a half miles, the group came across
Little Wilson Falls, a fifty-foot waterfall
where we decided to have lunch. Taking
our time to swim at the bottom of the Falls
and scale some of its treacherous canyon
walls, we made a delicious peanut butter
and jelly sandwich lunch at the top of
the Stream. Using Wheezy's Wilderness
Wash and the cabin's Dr. Bronner's soap,
we bathed in the stream and horsed
around fast moving water, getting clean
for the first time in days.

After everyone but Bubbles soaked
in some rays, we got back on the trail
and started a much slower four miles to
Wilson Valley Lean-to. The group was
a little more spread out after lunch and
when we trickled into the site, the entire
cabin was exhausted from the day's hike.
A little shell-shocked by the difficulty of
the day, we slowly set up our tents and
hammocks and started making dinner - a
cheesy pasta with pepperoni that helped
to brighten our spirits. Unfortunately,
Noah, Lesko, and Harry were all feeling
a little sick, so the group's usual buoyant
energy was flagging. We were all too
tired for cards tonight, so before dark
had even descended on the site, many of
the guys were in their tents drifting fast
asleep, looking forward to another day
on the trail.

July 8 (Cloud Pond Lean-to):

The men of Gucci Maine Trails I were

again woken up by Timmy at an early
hour. Though we were still haunted by
some of the slowness that had plagued
us on sea kayaking, the boys were able to
muscle down an oatmeal breakfast and
get moving before Timmy or Addison
got too mad. The agenda for the day was
ambitious - eight miles, mostly uphill,
that would put us at Cloud Pond Lean-
to, a site perched at 2,500 feet above sea
level on the East side of Barren Mountain.
Like the utter savages that MT I had at
this point become, we went into the day
resolved to tear up Barren Mountain as
fast as we could.

True to their word, Coybear, Wheezy,
and Liam set a lightning fast pace that
left Addison and Timmy in the dust.
With unrelenting speed, the cabin darted
up Barren Ledges, a sun-scorched stretch
of rock offering panoramic views of the
surrounding landscape. Around noon,
the cabin stopped for some pictures
and a classic Kieve lunch - tuna on
pita bread. Still shy of the summit of
Barren Mountain, though, the boys kept
pushing on, stopping only occasionally
to take in the scenery. After another
steep push up the west side of Barren
Mountain that left the group stretched
apart by about a mile, we came across a
tall fire lookout tower that marked the
mountain's peak. By climbing its rusty
but stable ladder, many members of the
cabin were able to get an even clearer
view of the nearby Maine wilderness.
Coybear and Noah took particular
delight in shouting various exclamations
from the fire lookout tower that could no
doubt be heard from miles around ("we
are SAVAGES!", "Gucci Maine Trails!",
"Kendrick have a dream!").

Coming down from Barren Mountain
in the late afternoon, we arrived at Cloud
Pond Lean-to to find it crowded with
through hikers. Once we staked our
claims on the primest tent and hammock
spots we could find, we took the better
part of an hour to bandage up our sore
and blistered feet. Noah's and Butters'
feet, it turned out, were in especially
rough shape. Given our close quarters
with other hikers, we kept our volume
as low as possible while making dinner,
becoming too loud only when we touched

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on sore subjects - Charlie and sports,
Butters and the relative superiority of
different superheroes, and Harry and
cooking. Though Noah and Charlie were
still feeling under the weather, they were
delivered steaming bowls of sausage and
pesto pasta by the chefs of the night.
As night fell, the temperature dropped
dramatically and sent the cabin running
to their tents for warmth,
July 9 (Carl A. Newhall Lean-to):

The boys of MT I were once again up
bright and early to take on what would
be one of the most challenging days of
the trip. After having struggled in many
previous mornings to pack up camp
quickly and efficiently, the boys finally
managed to get on the trail at a fairly
reasonable hour after having eaten a
quick meal of Pop Tarts and bandaging
up feet to prevent further blisters. The
most notably damaged feet of the cabin
as of yet belonged to Simon, who that
very morning received an excellent
"pedicure" from Timmy and Addison to
hopefully hinder any additional blisters
or sores. With everyone's feet patched
up, the group set off, with Charlie Lesko
leading the pack at a mind-blowing pace.
What made this feat even more incredible
was the ailing infection in his throat,
which turned out to be a symptom of
the ongoing case of mono he had been
carrying. After having hiked 13 miles,
Lesko was evacuated at the KI logging
road. While Timmy waited with Lesko
at KI, Addison and the group pushed
onward to the Carl A. Newhall Lean-to
finishing the 18-mile hike an hour into
the darkness.

July 10 (Sydney Tappan Campsite):

Timmy walked into the Carl A.
Newhall campsite early in the morning
to find all the campers safe and asleep
in their tents. Having already completed
the hiking scheduled for this day, the
group slept in and got to make a trail
rarity for breakfast, M&M pancakes. After
filling our guts with what seemed to be
unlimited pancakes, the crew decided to
push onwards to make the next day of
hiking a little easier. We beasted up Gulf
Hagas Mountain to the Sidney Tappen
Campsite which we found empty and
luckily had to ourselves for the night.

At 2,500 feet of elevation water was a
struggle to boil. However, Weezy and
Harry spearheaded the cooking effort
making a phenomenal batch of pasta
alfredo. The elevation and weather
didn't allow for Timmy and Addison to
sleep outside in their hammocks as they
usually do, so they moved into the tents
with the campers. Timmy hopped into
Coybear, Harry, and Noah's tent, while
Addison set up his bed in Butters, Liam,
and Weezy's tent.
July 11 (East Branch Lean-to):

Waking up in the clouds at Sydney
Tappan, the weather left the campsite
wet and muddy. A slow wake-up led into
granola and powdered milk for breakfast.
Eager to conquer the three peaks ahead,
Timmy and Addison left the rest of the
crew to pack up the campsite. A slow
and staggered start to the day caused a
re-group up on the first peak of the day.
Joining the counselors there, the cabin
resumed normal hiking protocol. Down
and up again, the crew found themselves
atop the second peak. With some well-
deserved snack time and a few jokes,
a break was taken. Simon, per usual,
argued against Superman in a battle
against Goku, a famed Dragon Ball Z
character.

While the debating continued, so did
the hiking. Liam led the charge (wearing
his thin Merrell running shoes) up
White Cap Mountain, the second largest
mountain MT I would climb on their
journey, only next to Katahdin. Arriving
at the summit after a steep, vigorous
incline, Heisenberg would be waiting
for quite some time before Weezy would
arrive with everyone else right on his tail.
A windy and cold peak forced everyone
to throw on some warm layers. On the
rock a large "V" was written with an
arrow signifying a viewpoint. Through
the bushes on the ridge, the crew stood
in awe at the sight: Katahdin. The end
of the journey was finally visible for the
first time. Although only the base of the
monstrous rock was visible, the top was
cloaked in a single dark cloud, adding a
sense of mystery to the mountain.

A lunch of pure tuna and mayo
fueled the cabin for the rest of the day.
Descending the mountain, MT I traveled

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together with full bellies and plenty
to talk about. Deciding to pass the first
campsite, East Branch lean-to seemed
a worthy spot for the crew to crash at.
Because he decided to provoke Timmy
earlier during lunch, Coybear was
reasoned into pumping Nalgenes of
water for everybody in the cabin.

While he pumped away, a dinner of
pesto pasta was prepared. However,
due to an unstable base for the stove,
the pot fell over and the pasta was full
of dirt. A few of the boys took time to
pick the twigs and specks of dirt out of
the pesto to make it more appetizing for
the rest of the cabin. Coyle and Noah,
returning from pumping, had bad but
funny news per usual. While they were
doing rigorous man-labor and pumping
water for everyone, the pump had
been damaged. The cabin proceeded to
eat cold, dirty pesto pasta and spirits
dipped for the worse. Morale was lifted
however, for firewood was collected
during a warm sunset between the moss
and trees. Darkness came, and the fire
was lit. Excited to play games, Coybear
went on to play hot coals with himself,
leaving the rest of the boys puzzled. A
small burn and a few coals later, MT I
found themselves retiring to their tents,
ready to rest for the night.
July 12 (Cooper Brook):

We awoke at East Branch Lean-to and
began our hike to Cooper Brook bright
and early in the morning. Packs were
relatively light because we were being
resupplied the next day. We arrived to
Cooper Brook in perfect weather and the
boys had a blast swimming and tubbing
in the brook. Back at the lean-to a German
through-hiker who went by the name of
Flow was hanging out. The boys quickly
grew fond of Flow and were mesmerized
at his account of his journey. We cooked
up some cheesy rice for dinner and hit
the hay early in anticipation for the
resupply the next day.
July 13 (Antlers):

We left Cooper Brook early in
anticipation for our 10 a.m. resupply at
Jo Mary Road. While we were waiting
at the road Flow hiked by and hung out
with us while we were waiting. Thomas
showed up in the red pickup truck filled

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with gear and food for our resupply. The
cabin housed 6 quarts of fresh fruit with
Greek yogurt. The cabin also decided to
give Lesko's snack bag to Flow because
he was running low on food. He was
very thankful and appreciative of our
generosity. After Thomas left and our
packs were full, we headed to Antlers.
Antlers was an absolutely breathtaking
campsite. It was situated in a clearing
of a cathedral of pines nestled against a
lake. The boys all went swimming and
had a great time tubbing in the lake.
We feasted on bacon cheeseburgers and
Harry excelled at this art. Both counselors
specially requested for Bubbles to make
them their burgers. After a big fire and
a couple games of President, the cabin
retired to their tents with very full
bellies.

July 14 (Wadleigh Stream Lean-to):

Today the boys of MT I decided to
space out their hiking so that everyone
would have an opportunity to hike and
think alone in the woods for the day.
While hiking the boys reflected on their
time at Kieve and thought of what they
were going to say at the campfire. We
hiked 14 pretty flat miles to Wadleigh
Stream Campsite. Here is a poem that
a camper who will remain anonymous
wrote about his day:

Walking through the woods

With our thoughts and memories

Kieve enchantment

We all reconvened at Wadleigh Stream
campsite and made some dank for
dinner. While eating dinner we shared
our experiences of the day and reflected
on our time at Kieve and the trip.
July 15 (Rainbow Spring Campsite):

After a slow wake up, MT I packed
up camp and chowed on oatmeal for
breakfast. Various snack trades were
made throughout the cabin to improve
the meal. In the end, however, the
breakfast ended up being butchered for
everyone, as too much oatmeal was eaten
after a long wait for the water to boil.

Getting on the trail, Nesuntabunt
Mountain awaited. Much flat-ground
hiking in the previous days made this
mountain especially difficult to climb,
but the crew made it to the top. Making
way towards the viewpoint at the peak

of the mountain, a spectacular view of
Katahdin was beheld. Unlike previous
views of the giant beast, the mountain
seemed extremely close this time. The
men of MT I knew that they would be
there in just a few days, soaking in the
reality of the hike there.

Upon descent of the mountain, a
lunch break was taken at the first sign of
water. PB and Js on pita bread sufficed
for a delicious lunch along with many
blueberries picked directly from plants
on the side of the trail. After everyone
filled up their bellies and their Nalgenes,
the cabin was back on the trail.

Addison led the charge into the
Rainbow Spring Campsite with Liam.
At the campsite there was a magnificent
swimming hole that the crew took a dip
in as the sun was setting over the water.
However, the best part about the place
was a small spring trickling a stream of
ice-cold water. While dinner was being
prepared, a single tree connecting two
hammocks supporting Coybear, Noah
and Weezy broke apart and sent a rather
large branch soaring down onto the tent
that Harry was in. Shocked by his near-
death experience, Ellsworth was quick
to exit the tent, and the hammock crew
decided that only two people should be
in the hammocks at one time. Dinner did
not disappoint, with Noah and Weezy
cooking up pasta with alfredo sauce and
diced pepperoni. Filled to the brim, the
men of MT I wanted nothing more than
to lie by the fire. Everyone in the cabin
collected enough wood to fuel a large
fire. Gathering for scary stories, the men
of Kieve bounced enough stories off each
other to scare everyone tiredly to bed,
ready to take on tomorrow's challenges.
July 16 (Kurd Brook Lean-to):

Even though it was only 12 miles to
Hurd Brook Lean-to, the boys still got
up around 6:30 to get the day going. We
refilled our Nalgenes with the succulent
water from Rainbow Spring and began
our hike to Rainbow Ledges. Noah and
Coybear entertained the cabin on the
hike by singing various Wiz Khalifa and
Jay Z songs. On top of Rainbow Ledges
a few blueberries could be picked, but it
was too early in the season to harvest a
substantial load.

213

We arrived at the campsite around
12:30 in the afternoon and fired up the
grills to make some tuna-melts for lunch.
After hanging out at the campsite for
most of the afternoon, a through-hiker
named Oldschool arrived at the Lean-to.
He captivated the cabin's attention with
illustrious tales from the trail. Oldschool
helped us build a fire that was nice
to keep the bugs at bay. We cooked up
two giant bags of rice and donated our
leftovers to Oldschool, who was very
grateful for a cooked meal. We decided
to go to bed early because the next day
we would have a longer hike to Katahdin
Stream Campground and we had to be
there by 4 p.m. to meet Henry Kennedy.
July 17 (Katahdin Stream
Campground):

We woke up early and headed out of
the woods towards civilization. After
hiking three miles we made it to the
Golden Road around 8 and had breakfast
at Abol Store. As we were crossing Abol
Bridge, Long Voyage 111 was passing in
the rafting bus. Will Hackett, a legendary
Kieve counselor, managed to squeeze
half his body out the window of the bus
shrieking in excitement at the sight of
our cabin. This pumped up the cabin
and made them even more excited to
reach Katahdin Stream. Timmy and
Addison bought a 12-pack of root beer at
the store to go along with the granola and
powdered milk breakfast. Oldschool was
also there scrounging down some muffins
that he had bought from the store. The
crew was happy to see him and he joked
around, even chirping Butters about the
logging trucks.

We moved on into Baxter State Park
and walked a couple miles along the
West Branch Penobscot River. We made
it to Big Niagara Falls for lunch and went
swimming and then enjoyed some PB&Js
for lunch. We kept moving after lunch
and made it to the Katahdin Stream
Campground by 3 and anticipated HRK's
arrival. Henry arrived right on time with
a trailer that was absolutely stuffed with
food. There were candy bars, fresh fruit,
Gatorade, meats, cheeses, chips, cheese
puffs, milk, and almost everything that
someone would want to eat after spending
almost a month in the woods. We talked

to Henry for hours about the trip while
feasting on delicious Italian subs. 4:30
a.m. alarms were set, and everyone went
to bed with Katahdin in their dreams.
July 18 (Kieve)

The boys of MT I woke up at 5:30 with
headlamps on to a dew-coated Baxter State
Park campsite. As the boys broke down
their tents, 1 could see both relief and
excitement written on their faces. After
they finished, the boys enjoyed a bowl
of Honey Bunches of Oats in the shadow
of Katahdin. As the group stared down
this 5,267-foot monster, they couldn't be
more ready to grab it by the horns and
wrestle it to the ground. The boys' desire
to summit rose tremendously as Henry
Kennedy arrived at the campsite. Once
everything was properly packed, and the
boys were taped up, we began the hike
with Mr. Kennedy at the helm. As Mr.
Kennedy flew up the mountain he said
something to the effect of "feel free to
pass me".

As we rose up the mountain, we were
constantly rewarded with breathtaking
views. About an hour or so into the hike
the boys saw, and subsequently passed,
our sister camp Wavus along the trail. As
we continued to fly up the mountain, the
weather got warmer, and to everyone's
surprise it got less and less windy. After
just less than three hours of some of the
best hiking Kieve has to offer, the boys
had made it to the top. Our hearts swelled
with pride, and filled with a euphoric
happiness as we stared out at what we
had just accomplished. The clouds in the
sky were few and far between, and I can
honestly say that I have not seen bigger
smiles than the ones on the boys' faces
as they took pictures with the sign, and
joked with Mr. Kennedy.

After about an hour of resting on
Katahdin, the now men of MTI headed
down for some well deserved pizza
and soda at Millinocket House of Pizza.
After wolfing down the pizza, the boys
clambered back into the van, and headed
back to camp.

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Maine IVails II
Walker Barnes, HBC

Day 1:

After announcing our departure at
breakfast, the boys of Maine Trails II
finished packing their last few things
and headed off around 10 a.m. to start
one of the most incredible experiences
of their young lives. We stopped briefly
at Wal-Mart to grab a few last minute
supplies and had a lunch of cold cuts
and Snickers. Robby Ford was driving us
to Monson where we would start the 100-
mile wilderness, which is the last, and
arguably the most difficult, section of the
Appalachian Trail. We had our sights set
on Mt. Katahdin, and we weren't going
to let anything stop us. Robby saw us off
with a few comical sing-alongs, then we
all said our last words and goodbyes to
him and we were off. It was a cloudy day
but luckily we only had about 3 miles to
hike to Leeman Brook lean-to where we
would be spending the night. It only took
us an hour and a half to reach the lean-to
where we set up tents and had a delicious
first dinner of sliced-up burgers with
peppers, onions, and bacon and talked
about some of our past experiences at
Kieve before calling it a night.
Day 2

After forgetting to set an alarm, we
woke up around 7:30 and made a nice
breakfast of scrambled eggs with cheese
and bacon. We were back on the trail
by 9 with a little bit of rain, which got
worse as the day went on. Unfortunately
Reath Neilson started feeling sick which
also continued to get worse the more we
hiked, but Walker was able to keep him
going by distracting him by talking about
music among other things. We eventually
came to a river crossing where we had a
quick snack and marveled in the sight of
Little Wilson Falls, which turns out is not
so little. As we continued on, we crossed
another stream and a set of train tracks
where we were welcomed by a package
of blueberry Pop Tarts that was kindly
left for us by Maine Trails III, who were
a day ahead of us on the trail. Shortly
after, around 2:30, we arrived at Wilson
Valley lean-to where we had a lunch of
peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and

set up our wet tents and hung our wet
clothes up to dry. After lunch Reath
immediately passed out in the lean-to.
His condition was declining rapidly as
we found out he was suffering from a case
of mononucleosis. As we started making
some tea for Reath and began preparing a
dinner of sliced up chicken with veggies,
we were graced with the presence of our
first two thru-hikers who were headed
south to Monson. After dinner we
retreated to our tents for another night of
sleeping in the woods.
Day 3

When we awoke the next morning
Reath's condition didn't appear to be
getting any better, and Atticus Shorr was
worried he had started to exacerbate a
serious past injury involving his back,
so we called camp and arranged for
them to be evaced from the trip. None
of us were happy to hear about the fact
that we would be losing two members of
our group so early on, but after a quick
breakfast of granola and powdered milk,
we saw them off as Pietro led then down
a small road that crossed the trail to be
picked up. Along the way they saw a deer
as well as a few other small animals.

It was raining hard now, and our
spirits were low, but we pushed on with
Walker leading the way, determined to
conquer this trail in honor of our lost
cabin mates. We had to cross a few rivers,
each one progressively harder than
the last. When we approached Vaughn
Stream, we realized that the rain had
made the river much stronger than we
expected, and below the river crossing
was another large falls, so we had to be
very careful crossing. Walker went first
and almost got taken by the current, but
luckily was able to grab a large rock. As
we celebrated this triumph against a
seemingly insurmountable challenge, we
saw Pietro running down the trail and
cross the river with what seemed like
very little difficulty at all.

We continued on after a few pictures
and found ourselves crossing Long Pond
Stream, but luckily we had a support
rope going across the water this time,
making things a bit safer. We made our
way to Long Pond Lean-to where we ate
a lunch of tuna sandwiches, then started

215

making our way up the steep Barren
Mountain. After reaching a disappointing
false peak, we finally made it to the foggy
summit where we saw a fire tower, But
due to the weather we continued on to
the campsite. After a long day we finally
made it to the rightly-named Cloud
Pond Lean-to where a group from Camp
Chewonki greeted us warmly, as well
as a couple more thru-hikers, one of
whom had a very nice dog he was hiking
with. We made a quick dinner of rice
and veggies, some of which Peter Sanna
spilled all over Pietro's sleeping pad,
resulting in his first night of many over
the course of the trip of cleaning duty.
Day 4

We finally awoke to some nice sunny
weather and a true view of Cloud Pond
without any fog! So we ate a quick
breakfast of oatmeal and got back on the
trail while the weather was still nice.
We hiked Fourth Mountain, then passed
Chewonki after an hour and a half of
hiking, even though they started a couple
hours before us. We then reached a
small hill that Pietro misjudged as Third
Mountain, claiming we only had "ten
more minutes" to the campsite. Because
of this mistake Bryce gave him the trail
name Sacagawea.

We then ate a delicious lunch of
peanut butter, honey, Nutella, and jelly
sandwiches and continued on to find
the true Third Mountain. We found and
climbed it as well as Columbus Mountain
and ended up camping at the Chairback
Gap Lean-to where we met a thru-hiker
from Texas.

After arriving we went tubbing for
the first time in the stream, which was
down a steep hill from the lean-to. As we
started cooking a dinner of pasta with
minestrone soup, Chewonki showed up
and set up camp with us once again.
While eating dinner, which we shared
with our new friend from Texas, we
watched a gorgeous sun set as the sky
turned a beautiful shade of red. Shortly
after this it started raining and, due to
poor placement, one of the tents flooded
causing Paul Archambeau and Peter
Schmidt to sleep in the lean-to.
Day 5

We woke up around 7:30 to Chewonki

heading out and ate some oatmeal, then
started to hike Chairback Mountain
around 9:30. We made it to a river
crossing around noon where we found
Chewonki once again getting a resupply,
and they were nice enough to take our
trash for us. After crossing the river we
ate a lunch of pepperoni and cheese
then proceeded to continue hiking, with
Pietro barefoot.

It became cloudy in the afternoon as we
slowly made our way to Carl A. Newhall
lean-to where we met the peculiar thru-
hiker couple named "Rope" and Christi.
Christi, it turned out, had narcolepsy as
well as restless leg syndrome and she
had suffered from a case of the "sleepys"
earlier that day on the trail. After setting
up camp, "Rope" gave the kids a challenge
proclaiming, "Whoever collects the
most firewood gets a nice surprise". As
the campers went off to collect some
firewood, a little crept out, and Pietro
started preparing chicken soup with rice
for dinner, two more southbound hikers
arrived, one from New York City and one
Philly. Peter Schmidt ended up winning
the surprise, which was some chocolate
pudding and we all went to bed early to
prepare for our big day tomorrov*/^.
Day 6

Today was the infamous Three Peaks
day (or really, four peaks day), which
is widely considered the hardest day of
hiking on our schedule. During this day
we hike the four largest mountains we
hike all trip until Mt. Katahdin. We were
woken up early by "Rope" asking for
extra food since they were running low.
When we finally woke up of our ovm
accord though, we found it raining quite
hard, so we waited to see if it would stop.
We ate Pop Tarts and Nutri-grain bars for
breakfast and started to leave at 10 a.m.
As soon as we headed out it stopped
raining and we knew today was going
to be a good day. By 12:30 p.m. we were
on the peak of White Cap, the last and
tallest mountain we would hike that day.
We were so pumped up by what we had
just accomplished, we were celebrating
on the summit with snacks and pictures,
but unfortunately it was still too foggy to
see our final goal, Mt. Katahdin.

As we started our descent, we stopped

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at Logan Brook Lean-to for a lunch of tuna
with soy sauce where we ran into a very
interesting day hiker who was trying to
go up White Cap during his lunch break.
He had apparently hiked the entire
Appalachian Trail back in 1998 and
had some very insightful things to talk
to us about. As quickly as he appeared,
he was suddenly gone again and so we
continued down the mountain towards
East Branch lean-to. Between the hike we
just conquered with ease and our meeting
with the thru-hiker, our kids had become
very excited and amped up to complete
this trip. Because of this we completed
the last 2.5 miles of the day after a small
dirt road crossing in only 30 min.

When we arrived to East Branch lean-
to we made a huge fire with lots of smoke
to get rid of all the bugs that were waiting
there for us. We then made a diner of
pasta alfredo as Pietro checked out Bryce
Khlem's ankle, which had been bothering
him for a few days and was starting to get
worse.
Day 7

We woke up ready for our resupply
today and ate a quick breakfast of Pop
Tarts and Nutri-grain bars and headed
off once again. We hiked the first four
miles of our day in only an hour and
15 minutes, climbing Little Boardman
Mountain and making it to Bee Pond
Road where we would meet Robby
Ford. As we waited, we checked Bryce
Khlem's ankle again and Peter Schmidt's
throat which had been bothering him as
well. Robby eventually showed up and
brought us so much fruit and Gatorade as
well as mail and supplies for the rest of
the hiking portion of our trip.

As we were eating cold cuts and fruit
for lunch, a thru-hiker coming all the way
from Georgia came by so we gave him a
couple sandwiches and plenty of fruit.
He had apparently been averaging around
30 miles a day! As we were packing up,
we broke the news that Bryce was going
to have to go back due to tendonitis in
his ankle. He was very reluctant to leave,
all he wanted to do was stay with his
brothers and complete the trip, but as
hard as he fought, his efforts were proven
futile as we all said our goodbyes and
watched him drive off with Robby back

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to camp. This certainly put a damper on
the trip as we were now down to a cabin
of only five. Our spirits were lightened
a bit as we came to a nice sandy beach
on Crawford Pond which we swam and
tubbed in for about an hour.

After that we continued to make our
way, across a couple streams and beaver
dams, to Cooper Brook lean-to. Once
there we built a nice fire and discovered
one of the nicest outhouses we had seen
in a long time. It was called the full
moon and it was new, clean and had a
padded seat, which goes a long way in
the middle of the 100-mile wilderness!
Pietro then swam in the falls on the river
next to the lean-to as Brian Andersen
was filling water bottles and accidentally
dropped one of Pietro's bottles into the
stream. Because of this Brian jumped in,
attempting to save it, but he was unable
and ended up losing a flip flop in the
process.

As Pietro started our huge dinner,
which included meat again for the first
time in a while, Peter Schmidt and Paul
Archambeau were hanging out in the
hammocks brought along on the trip,
reading and relaxing after a hard day,
both physically and mentally. We then
ate a huge dinner of bacon cheeseburgers
and sausages before Walker led a small
yoga session with Peter Sanna and
Arthur Forcione, since Peter had been
complaining about a slight pain and
tightness in his leg. Before going to bed
Walker jumped into the river as well to
cool off a bit as it was incredibly hot and
humid out that night.
Day 8

We woke up around 8:30 and made
some fantastic breakfast burritos before
heading off for another day of hiking.
After passing a few southbound hikers
and another group going south, we
made it to the Jo-Mary Road where we
took a break for about an hour and went
swimming in the nearby stream. We then
ate a nice lunch of peanut butter and jelly
with honey and continued on our way.

We came to another bridge where we
met another thru-hiker who was coming
all the way from Georgia.. We then made
our way to the Antlers campsite, which
was quite nice and was conveniently

placed right on the shore of a very
shallow lake. Spirits were a little low
since the departure of another one of our
cabin mates, Bryce Khlem, but we started
brainstorming ideas for our entrance
back into camp. Arthur Forcione had
some really crazy and creative ideas,
but unfortunately none of them were
practical enough for us to really be able
to pull them off, but we appreciated the
effort, it certainly got us all thinking. We
had a great dinner of chicken burritos,
which were made with the help of Pete
Schmidt and Paul Archambeau. After a
beautiful sunset we made some S 'Mores
and told some stories before lighting
off sparklers and singing the national
anthem as loud as we could, after all it
was the 4th of July.
Day 9

We woke up a little late this morning
and had granola and powdered milk for
breakfast before leaving around 10. After
covering about 4 miles of trail in an hour,
we stopped at a lake and saw Katahdin
for the first time. We knew we would be
up there in a matter of days and we got
really excited. We swam around for a bit
and had a snack before starting some solo
hiking, allowing our kids to have their
own experiences with the wilderness
that surround us all constantly. We let
Peter Schmidt take the lead and waited
for between a half hour to an hour before
continuing on at a nice steady pace,
making sure we didn't hike too fast and
catch up to those ahead of us.

As we hiked separated along some nice
sandy beaches, the weather started to
get very cloudy and looked like it might
storm soon. So we formed a full group
again and proceeded to Wadleigh Stream
lean-to. Over the course of the day we
ran into two older women who were
hiking southbound and had nothing but
wonderful things to say about each of the
boys.

When we got to Wadleigh Stream lean-
to there was a group of Canadians staying
there as well. We made a nice dinner of
chicken and rice soup with pasta and
talked about the possibility of sunrise
hiking Nesuntabunt Mountain the next
morning. This idea didn't make too many
people happy, especially Peter Sanna

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and Arthur Forcione who immediately
started plotting ways to foil these plans.
So we decided to wake up at 7, a fairly
normal time, but we let the cabin think
we were still waking up early to surprise
them.
Day 10

The entire cabin was very happy not to
be woken at 1 a.m. as they thought they
would be and we ate a quick breakfast
of Pop Tarts and Nutri-grain bars before
climbing up the dreaded Nesuntabunt
Mountain. When we got to the top, we
had a nice snack break and got some
great views of the surrounding area. As
we kept hiking, we stopped briefly and
had some more Pop Tarts for lunch and
gave some of the extras to a fellow hiker
going south. We eventually came to a
bridge we wanted to try to jump off of,
but it was much too shallow so we just
swam briefly instead.

We were headed for the Rainbow
Springs campsite, but when we ended
up arriving at the Rainbow Stream lean-
to that was 4 miles closer. We were all
so tired we decided to just stay there
that night. After a nice snack of Milky
Ways, and some tubbing, which Arthur
Forcione gladly did for around an hour
and a half, we met some nice thru-
hikers, one of whom had run in over 75
marathons after the loss of his first wife.
He gave us a bag of some great nuts to add
to our dinner of pasta with minestrone
and then we called it a night.
Day 11

We woke up at 7:30 and ate some
granola and powdered milk before getting
back on the trail by 9. We hiked about
6 miles in about 3 hours and passed the
Rainbow Springs campsite, which looked
particularly muddy. We eventually made
it to the Rainbow Ledges that were made
mostly of a giant flat rock and had a
really nice view of the past mountains
we had climbed and some nice sunrays,
so we stopped for lunch. We stayed there
for about an hour. We ate some peanut
butter and jelly sandwiches and relaxed
a little bit in the sun before continuing
on our way to the last lean-to in the 100-
mile wilderness, Hurd Brook.

On our way down from the ledges
Pietro started sprinting down the trail.

followed by Peter Schmidt and Paul
Archambeau. When the rest of us caught
up, we all hung out at a stream for a little
while, only to realize we were less than
200 yards from the lean-to the whole
time. When we got there, we met a nice
southbound thru-hiker from Georgia and
a couple from upstate New York who
were headed to Rainbow Springs. After
a little relaxing, we made a dinner of
pasta with tuna for our last night on the
trail. As we started to go to bed, it started
raining and everyone had to quickly run
to put their rain flies on their tents and
get their stuff bomb-proofed.
Day 12

We woke up excited for our last day
on the trail and had some oatmeal for
breakfast. We got started down the trail
and in no time we were at the sign
proclaiming the end of the 100-mile
wilderness where we stopped, had a
snack, and took plenty of group photos.
Shortly after we emerged onto the
Golden Road, the longest private road
in America, and crossed Abol Bridge.
We stopped at the Abol Bridge store
and got some tasty snacks such as chips,
sodas and some sweets, which we all
thoroughly enjoyed.

We then started down the last portion
of the trail excited to get to Katahdin
Stream Gampsite for our resupply. We
came upon this one area on the way
which looked ominously similar to
Acadia which had some awesome natural
water slides, so we stopped for an hour
or two and had some fun along with tuna
sandwiches for lunch. Eventually we
got to Katahdin Stream and we put our
backpacks down for what was essentially
the last time. We all felt so good about
making it this far; now all we had to do
was wait for Walter to arrive.

We found our reserved campsite and
waited and soon enough we saw the
big white van pull up and who else
was there but Bryce Khlem and Atticus
Shorr! We were all so excited to get them
back, spirits were at an all-time high,
we couldn't wait to hike Mt. Katahdin
the next day as a group once again. We
celebrated and ate a huge dinner of
sausages with chicken, bacon and cheese
subs with veggies and some baked goods

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sent to us from some of the lovely ladies
of the Ritz. Tonight was a good night.
Day 13

We woke up early, around 4 a.m.,
ready to conquer the tallest peak in
Maine. We had a nice hearty breakfast
of cold cuts and oranges with some hot
tea and packed everything up. It was a
beautiful day and it only took about 3
hours to get up Mt. Katahdin. On the way
up we passed a Wavus group. Once at the
top it was just amazing to see the group
dynamic essentially back to how the trip
started, with only Reath Neilson missing,
but he was with us in our hearts and
minds. We had snacks and took some
pictures, then headed back down the
mountain, ready for some pizza. When
we all finally got back to Katahdin Stream
campgrounds, we packed up and headed
to the Millinocket House of Pizza.

Once there we got a whole bunch of
pizza for the cabin and headed off to
Wal-Mart to get some gear we were
missing. We spent about an hour and a
half at Wal-Mart due to a small mix up,
where we did some fun people watching,
but eventually we got out of there and
met up with JP who gave us our paddles
and headed to Stonington. On our way
to Stonington the weather started to
turn and it looked like it might storm,
but luckily there was no lightning or, in
the end, even really much rain. But we
were still behind schedule a bit so by
the time we were ready to push off from
Stonington, it was 9:30 pm and pitch
black outside, so we turned on our strobe
lights and headed straight for Rock Island
where we found Maine Trails III. We
were so relieved to finally make it to the
island and when we saw Maine Trails
III, we were even happier, so we set up
camp quick and all passed out with an
incredibly long day now behind us. We
were finally on the ocean.
Day 14

We woke up to some fog and made
some delicious breakfast burritos as Pietro
paddled to Stonington with Maine Trails
III to get the last of our missing supplies.
When they returned, we had everything
packed up and had a quick lunch of
leftover cold cuts before heading out on
our way to Kimball Island. Unfortunately

about halfway there the fog became too
much so we had to turn around and
ended up staying at Hells Half Acre,
which, despite its name,^ is actually a
really nice campsite with platforms for
tents, a beach and everything. After a
little relaxation, we made a great dinner
of beef burritos and called it a night.
Day 15

Again we woke up to fog, but this
time it was so bad, you could hardly see
the other tents, so we decided to take a
much-needed rest day for safety reasons.
Because of this we decided to go back to
sleep for a little while longer and when
we finally woke up, we had a nice brunch
of M&M and graham cracker pancakes.
As the day continued on, it started to
clear up, but we had already decided to
stay where we were so it didn't matter
much to us, except Pietro who was a bit
upset with himself at the time.

At around 3 Pietro and Peter Schmidt
went on a short paddle around the
island and saw a seal as well as a couple
ospreys catching fish in the water. While
they were gone, Atticus Shorr and Bryce
Khlem went cliff jumping and tried to
go spear fishing while pretending to be
savages. When they got back, every one
collected a lot of firewood and Pietro took
Atticus and Bryce and Paul Archambeau
to go looking for mussels. They ended up
collecting over 120 mussels for the entire
cabin to cook and eat with dinner. Pietro
started to get very cold so he started a
fire and huddled close to it for a while
to warm up. Peter Sanna spent most of
the day resting as he was feeling a little
bit sick, but luckily by dinner he was
already starting to feel better. For dinner
we made some pasta with veggies along
with the mussels and afterwards we
grilled bananas on the fire and ate them
with Nutella. As the boys got into bed,
Pietro surprised them by throwing a
small crab in each of their tents in good
fun, causing hilarity to ensue as they
attempted to get it out.
Day 16

We awoke to a clear day with some
sun for the first time since we got onto
the ocean. We packed up camp, then ate
some granola with powdered milk and
headed off to Stonington to drop off some

220

trash and fill up our water. After that we
paddled down to Harbor Island where we
stopped and had pepperoni and cheese
on pitas for lunch. From there we then
paddled to Wheat, looking for a place to
camp, but Wheat was occupied. So we
then went to Burnt Island, but, when we
got there, we were unable to find a place
where we could set up camp. We went
back to Wheat, hoping there might be a
little bit of space for us. When we returned
to Wheat, it turned out to be much more
crowded than we initially thought and
there were some shenanigans going on
causing us to deem it "Party Island".
From there we headed back to Harbor
Island where we finally set up camp and
made a fantastic dinner of Boboli pizzas,
but we forgot the sauce. Thanks to some
quick thinking by Walker, though, we
realized we could use barbeque sauce as
a replacement. After dinner we traded
some fun stories and made hot chocolate
and S 'Mores to fill whatever room was
left in our stomachs. After an incredibly
filling dinner we all laid out on the rocks
and gazed up at the stars, which were
absolutely breathtaking.
Day 17

We had a very slow morning despite
fantastic weather. We decided to leave so
that we could catch the sunset over the
ocean right as we were pulling into the
campsite. So we had a brunch of peanut
butter and jelly sandwiches with honey.
Pietro and Paul Archambeau then tried
to construct a makeshift fishing pole
and go fishing, but they were not very
successful at all. We then had a small
chess tournament but we did not really
keep track of any overall winner. We also
started talking more and more about the
character created by Bryce Khlem known
as "Lobsterman Jed," the stereotypical
Maine lobsterman who doesn't care
about sea kayakers at all and only sees
them as "speed bumps" which was also
depicted by Peter Schmidt in a drawing.

As we were hanging out on the rocks
before we were about to head out, we
spotted a group of at least three porpoises
swimming in the water very close to the
island so we pushed off and paddled with
them for a few moments before they got
scared and disappeared. As we paddled.

we started bursting into song, singing
such classics as "Bohemian Rhapsody",
"Wagon Wheel" and the Pirates of the
Caribbean theme song. As we finished
our paddle and pulled into Russ Island,
we saw a giant beautiful sailboat with a
group on the island and the sun started
setting creating a beautiful shade of pink
and red in the sky.

When we arrived at the island and
finished setting up camp, we went and
introduced ourselves as well as Bryce
Khlem who was wearing a Kieve staff
shirt and was pretending to be a junior
counselor momentarily. We then started
cooking a great dinner of chicken noodle
soup with rice for our last night in the
Stonington Bay. That night in the tent
there was also a roast that was going on
between the campers, including some
self-roasting which was really breaking
up any tension that had developed from
being together with no one else but each
other for so long.
Day 18

We woke up early, around 6 a.m., to
make sure we were early to our final
resupply , but the campers were not happy
with how early we were, so they packed
up quick to prove they didn't need so
much time and could sleep in longer in
the future. We had a quick breakfast of
Pop Tarts and Nutri-grain bars before
heading off to Stonington. Once at
Stonington we had plenty of time before
our resupply so we spent it playing chess
and watching a lobster boat race that was
going on in the harbor.

Eventually a Kieve van appeared and,
to our surprise, it was T.J. and Dexter!
We were all very glad to see Dexter as
he arrived after we left and it turned out
he was leaving the next day to go back
to South Carolina. They brought lots of
packages and mail for us and after a quick
stop at Hannaford for some fresh foods,
we were dropped off at Friendship to
begin the last leg of our trip in Muscongus
Bay. Pietro was feeling kind of sick, but
he pulled through and decided to finish
out the trip with us. From there we then
paddled straight to Otter Island and were
back to our usual routine, except now
we had some nice new reading material.
When we got to Otter, we ran into a small

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group which was just leaving and took
an immediate liking to Pietro. We set up
camp and then made a huge dinner of
cheese steak and tortellini and then made
more grilled bananas with Nutella.
Day 19

We woke up late again for another
slow morning and had a nice brunch
of breakfast burritos. We were not in
any rush because we were waiting for
the high tide so that we could go off the
rope swing and go cliff jumping. As we
were waiting, however, we saw a strange
motorboat headed our way moving pretty
quickly. We were all confused at first,
but then we realized it was Hog Island
Ryan who had come to invite us to Hog
Island for a lobster dinner with Maine
Trails III and none other than Henry
Kennedy. We were all very excited and
packed everything up very quickly. We
then took a couple swings and jumps
before leaving for Hog Island.

On our way there we decided to sail,
but it didn't quite work out as we had
planned so we finished paddling strong
and pulled into Hog Island to be greeted
by Maine Trails III. Once we arrived
and got all set up, the boys from the
two cabins were sent on a race of sorts.
The objective was to circumnavigate the
island, collecting trash, and to swim out to
another small island and retrieve a Kieve
colored buoy. While they were gone, the
counselors set up for dinner and Henry
Kennedy arrived with some delicious
food. Maine Trails III started to trickle in
first, one by one with no trash, but the
boys of Maine Trails II left as a group and
returned as a group with a giant bag of
trash. We all celebrated where we were
and the people we were with as well as
the delicious lobsters and pie and Round
Top ice cream. It was another great night
to be in Maine Trails.
Day 20

We woke to extreme heat and humidity
and attempted to make pancakes, but
due to some error in measurement we
ended up with a very watered down
mix. Luckily for us Yani from the island
was able to save our pancake mix as we
were eating some precautionary peanut
butter and jelly sandwiches. So we made
pancakes with M&Ms and got back on

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the water. We paddled around Hog near
the coastline and then stopped at a beach
on the north side of Louds Island where
we did some swimming and chilling.
We then went to Thief Island where we
set up camp then proceeded to Harbor
Island for some cliff jumping.

We had some fun cliff jumping at
Harbor and Bryce Khlem and Walker
saw a bunch of seals on their way there.
We had a great time throwing snacks off
the cliff for the kids to attempt to catch
as they jumped into the water below. The
only camper who successfully caught
a snack was Atticus Shorr in a quite
amazing performance. When we were
done, we discussed the idea of a sunrise
paddle the next morning, which didn't
go over well, but we ended up coming to
an agreement and paddling back to Thief
where we made pizza for dinner. During
dinner a group from Quebec arrived and
camped on the rocks by our site but they
didn't cause us any trouble. After a very
filling dinner we attempted to eat some
cookies but ended up going to bed early
in preparation for the next morning.
Day 21

We started our final full day on the trip
at 3 a.m. with a short paddle to watch
the sunrise over the open ocean. It was a
little cloudy but the sunrise proved to be
worth the early wake-up in the end as we
got some beautiful heaven rays coming
off the sun as it rose. We then went back
to Thief Island for a couple more hours
of much-needed sleep. When we awoke,
Pietro started sharing his idea to go all
the way to Otter to cliff jump and rope
swing before going all the way back to
the south end of Hog where we were
planning on camping that night. This
idea did not go over well, especially
considering we needed high tide to use
the swing to jump off the cliffs which
wouldn't be until 4 p.m., and so the
campers started a "monkey revolution."
So we all had a group map session and
came to a compromise of paddling
around Louds Island and camping at
Hog. We were off by 12 and, once we
got around the south end of Louds, we
were taken by the wind. Brian Andersen
and Peter Sanna started floating north
with no effort at all so Bryce Khlem and

Walker started slowly following them,
expecting the group to be close behind.
The rest of the group, however, decided
to beach and try to set up a sail, causing
them to fall way behind, but they caught
up quick due to the massive tailwinds.
We all met up again on the beach from
the day before where we discovered a
large structure built of drift wood with
some rather peculiar features such as a
torn-out boat radio.

After some investigating we moved
on to our campsite on Hog Island and
proceeded to hike to the north end of the
island to the base camp for a last night
surprise. When the campers arrived, they
soon found out that Walker and Pietro
had given Hog Island Ryan the rest of the
pouch money in order to buy steaks for
the final dinner along with some chicken
noodle soup with rice. After a fantastic
dinner it started to get very buggy, so
we all hid out in the bathroom for a
little while and spent some serious time
reminiscing about all the experiences we
had just shared together. A fantastic time
was truly had by all. When we finally
left the bathroom, it started to rain so
we all hiked back quickly in the dark
as our campers once again neglected to
put on their tents' rain flies. We got back
before the rain got too bad and fell asleep
to the sound of one the most intense
thunderstorms we had all trip.
Day 22

We woke up excited to get back to
camp. Packed everything up quick and
headed straight to the Bremen Landing
where we were met by Reid Andersen
and Ben Swanson as well as Maine Trails
III. We then were unexpectedly dropped
off at the Damariscotta Mills after being
informed we had to paddle in for our
entrance. So we somewhat reluctantly
paddled for a final 5 miles into camp
where we made a last minute entrance
at G-swim that went off without a hitch.
Maine Trails II had made it back to
camp; they had conquered the 100-mile
wilderness and the ocean itself. These
boys had changed into men and learned
a great deal about themselves and the
world they live in along the way. Now all
that was left was cleaning and the final
couple days of camp.

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Maine Trails III
Day One

Awakening at some ungodly untold
hour, Maine Trails III began its epic quest.
After a quick snack attack, we loaded
into the bus with The One. True to form,
The One took care of dry cleaning and
his daily Dunkin Donuts run, whilst his
five-fingered cat climbed all over his
face. Cam introduced the children to the
question, "What is a Juggalo?" and Miles
took a nap. At Monson, Roscoe perfectly
led the cheer after George botched it on
his first attempt. Akin to the film The
Mist, we trudged forth through foamy
white. Unluckily, the stove was broken,
Chewonki stole our campsite, and the
rain dumped buckets down upon on us.
All in all, spirits were low.
Day Two

Lacking a stove, we popped down
Pop Tarts. Parrino used some spare time
to start his book, The Mistress Behind
the Door, an avant garde 18th century
masterpiece. Stopping in at a lean-to for
lunch, we ate hummus and there was
much rejoicing. Making it the additional
.4 off trail miles to Cloud Pond was a trial,
but we endured. Stove still out of order
and wood wet, Roscoe beseeched a tribe
of lean-to dwellers for aid. Cook made
the food on his stove. Chief delivered
wisdom, and Sugar bounced around.
Miles was dubbed "Fire Champion." We
dried out clothes after our meal of brats,
eggs, and onions. And before bed Cam
was gifted a special cream.
Day Three

We started the day with bagels,
the breakfast of champions. On the
mountaintop, Charlie cried out for an
unseen Noah, and Noah answered his
cries. Also, Charlie took a mean spill.
Luckily we had brought sun butter, as
Parrino couldn't eat the regular kind.
At our next campsite, we met a history
teacher whom Noah took kindly to. In
attendance at the lean-to were Freaky
John, Twang, and Fartmaster. Cam read
Roscoe stories aloud, and luckily, for all
those who were concerned, farts are still
funny.
Day Four

After devouring cold oatmeal, we

dipped downhill only to charge back
up again. Atop our first real summit we
were able to camper connect and enjoy
the vast vistas of Maine. The council
team called up Reid and wove a tale of
woes. He replied with brisk businesses-
like nonchalance. After making our way
down a rockslide, someone upstairs
turned up the heat. Luckily, the team
cooled off with a substantial water
crossing or two. Bringing up the rear,
were Cam, Roscoe, and Noah, who ate a
hot bowl of sushi. Those in front didn't
wait up and missed out.
Day Five

The morning greeted us with more
lambas bread (read: cold oatmeal), solid
weather, and good times. Unbeknownst
to the council team, Parrino had been
carrying with him a knife that put
Rambo's to shame. Atop White Cap, as
is tradition, a hearty meal of tuna was
dished out. Miles declined to partake,
instead capturing the horizon with
time lapse photography. The campers
began to take to the gravity bag for water
purification, which would eventually
lead to its demise. After swimming and
scrubbing, the team enjoyed real cooked
food (read: bacon) roasted over a fire.
The idea of an X-mas themed entrance
was developed and Charlie approved.
Day Six

The campers in the head of the pack
spent hours discussing movies, as Noah
learned more about life from esteemed
role models Roscoe T. Wetlaufer
and Cameron Miller. At another fine
swimming campsite, the boys braved
leeches and Parrino recalled the film
The Dump Aquatic. George incorrectly
informed Roscoe that a camp group
nesting nearby was Wavus, leading to a
rather embarrassing moment (read: par
for the course in Roscoe's life). Miles
downed four helpings of couscous, as it
was so utterly delectable. We met a crazy
old man, Cam started reading Parrino's
book, and we cooked up the pancakes.
Also, we are bad at LNT
Day Seven

Devouring leftover pancakes we
headed out for our resupply. It was an
exceptional hour, thanks to Robby, Liza,
and Kayleigh. Let the record stand that

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Robby was on time. Heavy loads for the
remaining leg led to bullets sweat on
a searing day, and much complaining
ensued. At a pit stop, Roscoe thought
about Maggie. Dungeons and Dragons
began in a spectacular manner, and Cam
got Noah out of a rather hard spot in the
depths of the Azorious dungeons. Antlers
proved to be a magical campsite to swim
and to relax.
Day Eight

We began the morning with breakfast
sandwiches greased up by Miles. More
gear was gifted to Griff. Roscoe took a
mean spill. After a lunch of cold cuts
(milk was a bad choice), John Parrino
knew what to do. On the other hand,
Miles carried out a brick of ducked
taped-up bio-waste. At the base of
Nesuntabunt, the American flag was
hung and sparklers fizzled. Candy was
passed around generously by Noah and
George. Sadly, Gypsy probably just isn't
going to make it. It was a long hard day
in 14 miles of backbreaking heat, but we
enjoyed the 4th of July nonetheless.
Day Nine

A strange fruit situation began our
morning, before the 12-mile day.
Anno3dngly enough, pain-the-ass
mountain proved to be just that. The
remainder of our hike was a muddy
slog, however, not as hellish as south

bounders had sworn. We slept in an
overcrowded campground, and met a
few more through hikers. Miles' ankle
had begun to hurt substantially, and we
were full of fear. The team swam again,
and a huge leech was found. Served up
for dinner was a pasta pesto situation,
and we went straight to bed.
Day Ten

A hearty meal of M&M pancakes
started our morning off right. Our teacher
friend caught up, to Noah's chagrin.
Charlie Ryan took yet another big spill,
and we played more of the movie game.
Over a fine fire, Miles made pizza. He
also made the fire, but you probably
assumed that. Roscoe hung out and got to
know the guys while Cam read, and then
Cam swapped in and told stories about
gentlemen of Polynesian descent. George
made up a movie, "The Tournament," as
did Noah, except his choice of fake film
was "Yugioh, the Movie."
Day Eleven

We ate some Pop-Tarts and hit the
road. Out of the woods, over the river
and to the store we went. Gatorade was
drank, and there was much rejoicing.
More Dungeons and Dragons brought
us to Big Niagara. Crushingly, there
were a number of casualties along the
road. Water levels were too high to
jump off the falls, but splashing in the

225

waters brought back memories for the
boys of yesteryear. A midday reading
of "Enchiladas at Sea," and we arrived
at Katahdin Stream Campground. Tom
and Sons brought us the gift of Cam
Burgers. Then, the esteemed gentlemen
continued on to talk eco-terrorism with
Miles. We gorged ourselves on the manly
meat, Duncan solved a most important
debate regarding "Waltz in Matilda," and
we went to bed.
Day Twelve

Awaking at four, we dug into cereal.
Alas, the milk was horribly spoiled. So
we ate Frosted Flakes and berries and
little else. Having broken through the
clouds, we enjoyed a great view atop the
summit of Mt. Katahdin. A few pictures
were taken, but Miles' device had broken
and Noah had forgotten the Camper
Connection camera. Cam and Roscoe
proved slow on the downhill, but not as
slow as Noah who got lost temporarily.
Noah got found, a 70% chance of rain
was defeated, and Roscoe panicked
thoroughly. At the boys' request, they
were able to enjoy Happy China Buffet
for the 5th year in a row. By the time
we were in the water, it was 7:30. The
maps and sat-phone nearly got forgotten,
but thanks to the haste of Waterboys
extraordinaire, Duncan and Thatcher,
and the skill and prowess of the Bearded
Bad-boy, Mr. Steele-Maley, all was well
in the world. Backed by a glorious sunset,
we rocked out on Rock Island, planned a
Bohemian Rhapsody entrance and sang
many a lullaby.

Day Thirteen

Philly cheese steaks for breakfast
proved to be an exceptional choice. We
had slept in late to rest our weary legs,
but the fog proved too much to pin us
down. In the afternoon, Roscoe and Noah
took advantage of the clearing weather
and went on an adventure. Miles and
Charlie cruised around the island. Noah
attempted to save a crab from Charlie's
death grasp. For dinner we had burritos
sans the wraps, and stories abounded.
Pietro rolled in late at night, and his boys
generally caused a ruckus.
Day Fourteen

For breakfast we enjoyed egg
sandwiches, with the additional treats
of avocados and tomatoes. Pulling back
into Stonington, Cam and Walter took
forever to purchase a spatula. Luckily
Pietro kept us company and the boys
didn't complain once. At Rock we made
PB&J on the fly. Roscoe and Noah fused
much like Vegeta and Goku, to form a
superior navigating team. They led the
boys through the fog to the glorious Isle
de Wheat. John Parrino stirred up some
mean Chinese food. To round out the
night the boys played games round the
fire, as the embers went higher.
Day Fifteen

Awakening to toasted bagels and fog,
the team dug in for the long haul. Later
in the afternoon the weather cleared, but
morale could not be raised for a frontal
assault on the open seas. Instead, Roscoe
took an elite team of Noah and Miles to
Isle au Haut for crucial supplies such as

226

ice cream, new friends named Josh, and
water. Back at the island of Wheat the
boys had started a massive bonfire and
gone swimming. For dinner we devoured
pasta alfredo with real broccoli. More
bonding time ensued after the meal,
ideas like hot embers got thrown around,
and a few good men arrived. The night
concluded with Dungeons and Dragons
in the council tent.
Day Sixteen

The boys spent the morning cleaning up
the fire pit extensively. Gifted navigating
rights, Noah led the boys, to the ringing
sounds of endless complaints. Chewonki
had once again gotten the best of us,
stealing Hell's Half Acre, and forcing us
on to Russ Island. For lunch we downed
grilled cheese and tomato soup. Then we
launched again in empty boats, exploring
a quarry on Green and jumping off a
high rock. For dinner we feasted on rice,
beans, and scrumptious cheesy fajitas.
Another round of Dungeons and Dragons
was played in the council tent, which
was a delight.
Day Seventeen

A fine day rose up before us. Blessed
by Pop-Tarts in the morning, we flew
to Stonington's pier. Arriving fifteen
minutes early, we waited for another boat
to put-out and sorted our gear. Before
long, Robby rolled in. On the drive.
Miles learned to turn left. We acquired
Magic cards, but sadly no pizza. Before
going crazy in Wal-Mart, we downed
our parfaits, which everyone loved.
George bought Dunkin Donuts, Roscoe
purchased Charlie Ryan cookie dough,
and Cam gave Miles that Klondike bar.
Charlie Ryan, birthday boy, gorged
himself on the dough, navigated, got lost.

and then found again. We arrived at Otter,
the tides all wrong for rope swinging.
Irregardless, Otter proved to be pretty
awesome. Charlie was sunburnt, we
depopulated the mussel colony, and no
one got taken to the hospital. A definite
win for the team.
Day Eighteen

Corned beef-hash and eggs is no doubt
the classic Kieve breakfast, but unluckily
we did traditional ketchup pairing. Griff
chose to navigate us to Thief Island, and
yet again we got lost. Roscoe righted the
course and we made mediocre time as
per usual. Miles chefed up some mean
burritos. Charlie led the wild stoat hunt.
Griff and George entered the arena of
Magic: the Gathering. Cam emerged from
his tent after a long winter of reading
his 1300- page book. The team stayed
up late, eating candy, wrestling, and
discussing entrances, including a Django
Unchained themed skit.
Day Nineteen

On west Thief Island, early we woke.
The boys scarfed down some Rocket Fuel,
no joke. Hog Daddy showed up, chilling
out, maxing, relaxing all cool. We blasted
off towards Hog Island lancing out across
the pool. Pietro and his boys, they were
up to no good. But we beat them in a
race around the neighborhood. I dig in
on lobster, clams, dry chicken and ice
cream but my stomach ain't scared. The
day was nothing like hanging with the
Fresh Prince of Bel- Air.
Day Twenty

Our team was roused by a majestic
scent wafting off deeply-marinated steak.
Miles had cooked and cleaned once
more, and after a motivational speech
series by Pietro and Hog Island Ryan, we

227

set out for Black Island. The two-hour
tour proved to be a hardship under the
open sky. Alas, Black had been stolen
from us by an evil hippie hive, and they
would thwart us again for our sins before
our days were through. We pushed on
to Otter, and finally got a chance to use
the rope swing. The away team, Roscoe,
Noah, and Miles, shot off for Franklin.
Backed by open ocean they gazed at a
wondrous lighthouse, and entered to
walk artisanal hand-crafted stairs. The
return journey was quick, and the night's
dinner, pizza was cooked up by Griff
and George. A small controlled fire was
made, and the boys hung about telling
tales, and not figuring out anything they
shouldn't have. Perrino.
Day Twenty-One

Taking our time to rise, we rehydrated
dehydrated milk and enjoyed a variety of
cereals. Miles of Call led our team, facing
down a veritable horde of questions and
complaints. We persevered to Crow, but
once again the island had been stolen
from us. Hippies were talked about
unkindly, and we pushed on to Hungry.
Facing headwinds, hunger, and low

morale, the team persevered and against
the odds, found the campsite. Water
was running low, but the fire was rising
high into the sky. George and Griff faced
the council team in magic, life stories
were told, and candy of many types was
devoured. Lighting and rain rolled in,
and all the little boys ran away into their
tents.

Day Twenty-Two

Early we rose. Soft winds licked
our backs, and within an hour we had
reached Bremen. Pop Tarts in our bellies
we loaded up the trailer. Reid sassed
George for his attempt to get out of work.
We put in at Russ' house, and completed
our paddle back to Kieve. True to form the
team argued at length about an entrance
and came to no conclusions. Charlie Ryan
sang of Kendrick Lamaz and his ducking
problem, and Cam reiterated in iambic
pentameter. Roscoe took some Camper
Connection photos. We arrived at shore
to a smattering of applause. Maine Trails
III was finished, with no evacs. The trip
had proved a complete and utter success,
a thrill ride, and a worthwhile time of
learning, growth, and justice.

228

Second Session Trip Reports

Jr. Kieve Courage
Bremen and Hog Island
Cole Phillips, HBC

Day 1: August 5th 2013

We arose at camp on the 5th of August,
fully packed and prepared for what was
for many our first ever camping trip.
Breakfast at camp was French toast
sticks, yogurt, and oatmeal. We left
camp at 10:30 and headed to Colonial
Pemaquid where the boys got to read
up on buildings that were over three
hundred years old. From there we drove
to the Kieve Landing at Bremen where
we were going to stay the night. After
unpacking our gear in the already set-
up 10-person Cabela's hunting tents, we
enjoyed cold cut sandwiches.

After lunch we went for a four-
hour journey with Captain Bill on the
Snowgoose III. We got to haul lobster
tanks, jump off the roof and sun bathe.
Sam was the first to jump off the roof,
followed quickly by Thomas, then Jasper,
then Harper. Devan was determined to
get in without jumping off the roof. So he
jumped in from the ladder into the 58-
degree water. The rest of the boys hung
out and got some wonderful Maine sun
on the bow of the Goose.

After four hours on the Goose, we
were returned to Bremen for some free
time before dinner. Bryson, Patten, Alex,
Thomas and Alden partook in a classic
game of 500 with a football while Devan,
Oliver, Jasper, and Jonathan explored
the coastline for crabs and crustaceans.
For dinner that night we had bacon
cheeseburgers that were widely received
by hungry campers. As the night came to
a close, we sat around the fire roasting
S 'Mores and playing Mafia. Once it was
time for bed we all made our way to the
tents. Alexa and Cole were in one of
the tents with Jonathan, Oliver, Devan,
Thomas, Bryson, and. Harper. Jamie and
Greg were in the other tent with Alex,
Patten, Andrew, Jasper, Henry, Alden,
, and Sam.

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Day 2: August 6th 2013

Potentially the latest any JK cabin has
ever slept in on a trip, we woke up as a
group at 7:30. For breakfast we had bacon,
sausage, egg, and cheese sandwiches on
English muffins. Once breakfast was all
cleaned up, we packed up the vans so
there wouldn't be too much clutter when
Respect and Kindness came to Bremen
later that day. With the site fully cleaned,
we got back on the Goose for a quick boat
ride over to Hog Island. The island is home
to three different habitats (as instructed
by Aaron Kaplan): water, intertidal zone,
and forest. We got to enjoy the touch
tanks, local wildlife preserved in the
form of taxidermy, and the question of
the day (What is the fastest bird of flight?
Answer: The Peregrine Falcon).

We continued our Hog Island
adventure outside and into the woods.
We had some time to see local flora
like the Maine Bay Leaf and we got to
eat some little bugs (infant shrimp) that
are also called nature's pop rocks. After
some time in the woods, it was time to
have a sun butter and jelly sandwich and
hit the road. But the trip wasn't over yet.

We had to stop at Round Top for some
legendary ice cream. Jasper, being from
England, was excited for his Rocky Road
but was alarmed by the almonds in it.
Nevertheless, he finished his ice cream
with a chocolatey pile of almonds on the
table. Just when the boys thought we were
done, we stopped at the Damariscotta
Mills for some bridge jumping. Alex was
the first to jump, but he was not the only
one. Everyone jumped off the bridge,
but Thomas just wouldn't stop. After
15 jumps we had to pull him out of the
water so we could make it back to camp
on time. We all loaded up in the van and
headed back to camp. What a great trip
we had and I hope the boys are looking
forward to another trip next summer!

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Jr. Kieve Kindness
Bremen & Hog Island
Graham Abbey, HBC

Day 1

We departed Kieve in the morning,
both Kindness and Respect caravaning
jointly towards Pemaquid Point. We
explored the museum and enjoyed the
picturesque views to be seen from the
Pemaquid Lighthouse. After a lunch of
cold cut sandwiches, we got back in the
vans and cruised to Bremen.

Captain Bill took us over to Hog Island
on the Snowgoose III where we split
up with Respect, who would spend the
afternoon on the Snowgoose, opting for
a kayak paddle to the mussel beach near
the Audubon HQ. We walked out into the
bay on a mussel bar that ran just under
the surface for quite a long distance.

Afterwards , we returned to the campsite
to cook dinner. After a delightful feast of
chicken burgers, we took a hike to a beach
where we jumped up and down on clay
pools on the beach and watched in awe as
the solid ground under our feet liquefied
from our simulated earthquake. We sang
the Kieve Song shortly after sunset. After
the hike, we had a campfire complete
with guitar, singing and S'Mores. From
there, for the last activity of a fun-filled
day, we stuck our hands off of the main
dock to experience the wonderment of
bioluminescent plankton.

Day 2

We woke up to rain. Amaury and I
cooked a breakfast of bacon, eggs, and
cheese on English muffins for the two
cabins for breakfast. Afterwards, we
began to break down our camp and move
personal and group gear to the dock
for transport back to Bremen. Around
9:30, the young men of Kindness went
out with Captain Bill and Megan on a
Snowgoose cruise, enjoying the beauty
of the Maine coast despite the soupy
conditions. Impressively, Harris Proctor,
Gray Connolly, Mac Greene, and Will
Ryckman vaulted off of the top deck of
the Snowgoose into the chilly waters of
the Atlantic. The boys enjoyed hauling
lobster pots, and we were thrilled to
find in one a beautiful beast that was
well over two pounds. After we were
returned to Hog, we finished packing our
things and departed to Kieve via Bremen
and Round Top, capping off what was a
magical overnight adventure.

Jr. Kieve Loyalty
Bremen & Hog Island
Andy Lynch, HBC

JK Loyalty left camp after breakfast and
headed for Pemaquid Point, where we
were ate a quick lunch and headed for
Bremen Landing. We took the Snowgoose
across to Hog Island where we dropped
off our bags and set out for several hours.
We pulled lobster traps and had the
chance to measure the lobsters to see if
they were legal catch. Gray, Vincent and
Alex all held the lobsters and threw them
back into the ocean when they turned
out to be too small. After we lobstered,
we jumped off the Snowgoose into the
frigid Atlantic Ocean. Max proved to be
the jumping champion, getting the most
distance on all four of his jumps.

When we got back to Hog Island, we
set up camp and toured the main part
of the Island. Aaron showed us the
museum that had a touch tank full of
various lobsters and crabs. Miles and
Alex really enjoyed getting to pick up the
animals and avoided any pinches. We ate
double bacon cheeseburgers for dinner
and the counselors made a fire while
the kids went on a nature hike with Hog
Island Ryan. We roasted S 'Mores by the
fire and ended the day by looking at the
bioluminescent algae that live in the
ocean.
Day 2

We woke up early and the counselors
made breakfast sandwiches while the
kids took down camp. Right after, Aaron
Kaplan led JK Loyalty on a kayak trip
around Hog Island. It was many of the
campers' first time kayaking. However,
Gray and Vincent were right on Aaron's
tail. Everyone did great. On our journey
around Hog Island we learned about
Native American eating habits, trash
disposal and shelter. Campbell and Miles
were very interested in the Indian history
and took in the beauty of Hog Island.
Also, on the hike, Philip, Tommy and
J.D. got their "Kieve Wildman" by eating
twenty-five edible bugs that live in the
ocean seaweed.

When our cabin arrived back to our
campsite on the other side of Hog Island,
we ate a quick lunch and cooked the

231

mussels that our cabin found on the first
day. J.D. and Vernon were eating away
at the delicious mussels until our cabin
demolished the whole bowl. We left Hog
Island on the Snowgoose and stopped at
Round Top Ice Cream, then Damariscotta
Mills on the way home. Eleven of our
twelve campers jumped off the bridge at
Damariscotta Mills after we cheered for
Caleb to jump off. After almost an hour
of fun-filled bridge jumping, JK Loyalty
headed back to camp to continue the last
few days of the session.

232

Jr. Kieve Perseverance Trip Report
Bremen & Hog Island
Tucker Callanan, HBC

Day 1

The boys of JK Perseverance (JKP) set
out Tuesday morning bright-eyed and
ready for an adventure. With their packs
on their backs and water bottles in hand,
we piled into the van and set out for Hog
Island.

On the way we stopped for lunch at
the scenic Pemaquid Point, a state park
that has a lighthouse and amazing view
of the ocean. The boys had fun climbing
around on the rocks on the shore and
getting splashed by the ocean spray.
We enjoyed a tasty lunch of turkey and
cheese sandwiches on the rocks and then
hopped back in the van to continue to
Hog Island.

After a few detours due to closed roads,
we finally made it to the Kieve landing in
Bremen. We unpacked our bags from the
trailer and lathered up in sunscreen as
we waited for our boat over to our island.
When the boat arrived, we met our two
guides, Ryan and Aaron who live on
the island. Also with us on the boat was
another cabin, JK Loyalty, who stayed
on the island with us, but did different
activities. Upon arriving on the island,
Ryan gave us a quick tour and showed us
where we would be camping.

My fellow counselors, Henry and Janie,
and I then gave a demo on how to set up
the tents that we would be sleeping in.
The boys were quick to learn and it was
awesome to see the boys work together
and set up their tents in their newly-
formed tent groups. Colin, Marco, Joey
and Cub even volunteered to help set up
one of JK Loyalty's tents. After setting up,
we saw a few more cool things that the
island had to offer.

Hog Island is not actually owned by
Kieve, but by the Audubon Society,
which specializes in protecting
endangered birds. The island has a
protected osprey sanctuary, containing
two parents and two baby birds. We were
able to see the whole family, which was
really cool, as there was a camera set up
above the ospreys' nest. The video feed
is actually available online for all to

see on the Audubon's website. We also
saw a friendly baby porcupine that was
incredibly cute and was not scared or
shy of humans at all.

After seeing these cute and fascinating
animals, we all put on our swimsuits and
lifejackets and prepared to go on a kayak
trip around the island led by Ryan. He
gave a quick demo on how to kayak and
then we set off into the chilly island bay.
It was in the bay that tragedy struck. As
I was snapping pics of all the boys trying
out their kayaks, I leaned a little too far
to get a shot and hilariously flipped my
boat. I came up to a roar of laughter, but
unfortunately the camera did not survive.
Soaked, and a bit chilly I climbed back
into the boat and we proceeded to have
a great time. We paddled all around the
island and stopped at a mussel bar, which
is like a sandbar but is made completely
of mussel shells instead of sand, and had
a snack and a swim. We paddled back to
the cove and were greeted by the baby
porcupine again as we pulled our boats
back up to shore.

The rest of the afternoon was spent
hanging out on the island. You could find
Will, Coop, and Thomas playing Frisbee,
Wyatt, Cub and Sam hanging out in the
hammocks, and Stephen, Owen and
Charlie checking out the island's nature
museum. The boys then were led through
team-building games with Aaron as the
counselors prepared dinner. For dinner
the boys feasted on double BBQ bacon
cheeseburgers and I was blown away by
how many campers were able to finish
the whole thing, a few said they could
eat another!

As the boys finished up dinner, Ryan
led them down to the intertidal zone to
look for mussels, and came back with a
giant pot of the tasty seafood. He then
led the boys on a hike around the island,
showing them all the cool plants and
animals that the island had to offer.
Finally, upon arriving back from the
hike, we all threw on our long pants and
sweatshirts and finished the day roasting
marshmallows by the campfire. It was a
great way to end the long day we had and
the boys quickly fell asleep in their tents
after the fire.

233

Day 2

The next morning we arose early
and packed up our bags and tents as
breakfast was being made. The boys
chowed down on bacon, egg and cheese
breakfast sandwiches and then prepared
for a boat ride on Kieve's old lobster
boat, the Snowgoose. After lathering up
on sunscreen, we met the captain of the
ship, Captain Bill and his dog Lizzy, and
boarded the 50-foot vessel.

Captain Bill took us all around the
beautiful coastal islands and showed us
how to pull up lobster traps. All the boys
helped heave up the traps and got to hold
the lobsters that were caught in the traps.
Although most of the lobsters were too
small to keep, it was cool to see how the
traps worked and what it was like to be a
lobster fisherman.

After a snack of Goldfish, the boys took
turns jumping off the roof of the boat into
the chilly water. Will, Marco, Colin and
Owen all jumped off the most amount
of times, earning themselves the Kieve
Polar Bear Qual. After our swim, it was
back to the island for lunch. We enjoyed
sunbutter and jelly sandwiches and were
able to cook up the mussels that the boys
had collected the day before, which were
absolutely delicious.

After our incredible lunch we packed
up our bags, said goodbye to our guides
Aaron and Ryan, and headed back to
camp. On the way we stopped at a cool
bridge in Damariscotta Mills that is
perfect for jumping off of. The boys had
a good time swimming and jumping and
soaking up the sun.

To top off our adventure we then
stopped on our way back at Maine's best
ice cream parlor, Round Top. Sitting out
on the parlor's porch, the boys enjoyed
their tasty treats as we talked about the
awesome trip we just had. From there
it was back to camp, blasting music the
whole ride home. I had an awesome time
with these boys and almost every one of
them was saying "That was fun, when's
our next trip!"

Jr. Kieve Respect
Bremen & Hog Island
Amaury Dujardin, HBC

July 7

After a sleep-in at Kieve and grabbing
breakfast in Pasquaney, the young boys of
JK Respect and Kindness were ready for
their one-night adventure to Hog Island
on the coast of Maine. To start our trip,
we quickly visited the historic Pemaquid
Point where we had lunch. Campers
explored the famous lighthouse that they
knew from the Maine state quarter, while
others watched the ocean waves crash
against the rocks below. After everyone
had eaten their sandwiches, we piled
back into the vans and headed off to our
main destination, Hog Island.

Once we arrived at the Kieve landing
in Bremen, we met Hog Island Ryan
and his friend Aaron. They told us
what we would be doing there before
we headed over for the short boat ride
on the Snowgoose. We quickly dropped
our belongings on the island and then
hopped right back on the boat for a two-
hour journey. On the Goose, Captain Bill
and First Mate Meghan helped us pull
up lobster traps. Many campers, such
as Burns, Nicholas, Declan, Aidan, and
Blake, helped heave pots onto the boat.
Unfortunately, none of the lobsters were
large enough to keep, so we threw them
back into the ocean. Captain Bill then
drove us to a swimming cove where
campers jumped into the cold Maine
ocean! It was so much fun. Jack, Nick,
Michael, and Sam Carneal jumped so
many times!

When we got back to Hog Island, our
cabin played games with Aaron. It is
hard to forget how good Dray was at
being a mama eider duck. After a quick
dinner, we hiked to Mussel Beach where
we sang the Kieve song and bounced on
quick clay. We played firefly on the way
back and then sat around a campfire on
the beach, where we sang songs and ate
S'Mores. Exhausted, we finally went to
bed around 10.
Julys

Woken up by the pitter-patter of rain
on the tarps, campers were up early.
Counselors quickly hopped out of the

234

tents and made breakfast in the rain,
while campers gathered around the fire in
the Fish House. After our breakfasts and
conversations by the fire, JK Respect and
our fearless leader Aaron prepared for a
hike into the Hog Island wilderness.

As we made our way into the forest,
we learned about several ecosystems,
such as the Tundra. Then we made our
way further down a path where we
started making forts. Unfortunately,
as Mekhi was picking up a log, Sam
Cooper ran over to help him, but the log
was accidentally dropped onto Sam's
forehead. Even though Sam went to
the hospital, the team did not weaken.
Campers rallied around Sam's departure,
going even harder than before for their
fallen comrade. They finished the trip
strong, had some Round Top Ice Cream on
the way home, and were later surprised
by Sam before returning to camp. Overall,
the trip was a great success and just an
awesome preview of what these campers
will experience in future years at Kieve.

235

South Glenayr Primer
Damariscotta Lake
Pierce Leonard, HBC

Day One -

We gathered our gear, packed our
canoes, and were departing the beaches
of Kieve by 10:30 AM. For many of the
campers this was their first time canoeing.
We started our trip by canoeing straight
out of the cove towards Swim Island. As
the campers began to understand how
canoeing works, we steadily increased
our pace. We rounded Swim Island and
took a right towards Windy Rock Island.
After a good paddle we arrived on the
backside of the island and stopped for
a break, snack, and a swim. We enjoyed
some Oreos after jumping off a rock and
swimming for 45 minutes.

After our break we lathered more
sunscreen on the campers and set out
for Southover. We arrived and pulled
out the canoes and showed the campers
how to properly position canoes against
trees and to place paddles and life
jackets under the canoes. We then set-
up camp and took the campers step-by-
step through the process. First the tarp
over the food prep area, then the tents,
etc. After setting up camp we ate lunch,
then we all went for a swim off the dock
and searched around for snails, crawfish,
and other critters, all of which we found
and collected for observation then
released back into the wild. The boys
enjoyed an afternoon snack of Cheez-Its
and we instructed them on how to use
a Katadyn water filtration pump. We
did not, however, allow the campers to
use it themselves to prevent them from
mishandling and breaking the new
equipment.

Then we all enjoyed a hike exploring
the property and saw a massive beehive
and a massive tree that the kids thought
would be perfect for a tree fort. Afterwards,
we started a fire in the fire pit and began
getting the fire ready for our dinner later.
The campers then began to play games
such as Sniper and Capture the Flag.
Some rested and read while others did
not stop playing. Around 5:30 PM we
began cooking up lots of bacon to add to
our cheeseburgers. We then grilled the

burgers and the campers absolutely loved
dinner. Shortly after dinner, we sent the
campers to get longs and longs on as it
was near 7:00 PM. We all sat around the
camp fire and asked questions, played the
Initial Game, and when we heard the bell
for Flag we all walked down to the dock
and made a circle and sang the Kieve
Song. We then went back to the campfire
to hang out and we had S 'mores, which
the kids absolutely loved. The kids and
counselors told ghost stories for a bit
and we were all in our tents headed to
bed at 9:30 PM. Although we weren't far
from camp, everyone treated the trip as
if we were hundreds of miles away from
Kieve.
Day Two-

The campers were up and at it at 7:00
AM and I took them all down to the dock
for a morning swim. We then went back
and packed up their personal gear before
breakfast. We made bacon/sausage, egg,
and cheese breakfast sandwiches. The
campers were in food heaven. After
cleaning up after breakfast, we all went
back and packed up our tents. The kids
almost got away with stuffing their tents
in the bags, but we realized what they
were doing and made sure they put their
tents away properly. We packed up all
our equipment and were going to hang
out until lunch when all of a sudden
South Harrington showed up for their
Primer and we took it upon ourselves
to pack up and get out of Southover. We
packed up and departed, heading towards
Blueberry Island. It was a small island,
but we all managed to park our canoes
safely to enjoy a swim and a tasty Rice
Krispies snack. It was 11:30 AM at the
time and then we got back in our canoes
and headed towards the island right
across from Southover to have lunch and
hang out. We enjoyed cold cuts again
and a whole bag of carrots. The campers
explored the island, finding many little
frogs and catching them. Around 1:30
PM we left the island and made our way
back to Kieve. When we returned, we put
away all of our gear up such as canoes,
paddles, and life jackets. We then took
our team gear back to Buck and set up
our tents to make sure they were in good
condition. I then found out we came

236

back earlier than we were supposed to,
but nonetheless we had a great primer
trip so there was nothing to complain
about. I'm super proud of my cabin and I
look forward to our Sugarloaf Mountain
Hiking Trip.

South Glenayr Trip Report
Sugarloaf Mountain
Pierce Leonard, HBC

Day One -

At 10:22 AM on Saturday (8/10/2013)
the cabin of South Glenayr departed Camp
Kieve for Cathedral Pines Campground.
The 3-hour ride went by quickly and we
checked in to our campsite. We quickly
set up camp and had a late lunch. For
the rest of the afternoon the boys played
Four-Square, Frisbee, and explored for
hours on end. We gave them snacks
when they were hungry and they kept to
themselves and were great. As dusk came
we prepared Philly cheesesteaks and had
a great feast around the campfire. After
the boys put on their night time attire, we
gathered around the campfire to enjoy
S 'Mores and some evening conversation
before bedtime. The day went by quickly
and we went to bed early to get ready for
our big hike.
Day Two-

The campsite was up and at it at 8:00
AM. We had breakfast and hung out
around the campsite until 10:30 AM. We
made our way to Sugarloaf Mountain
and made the hike to the top in one hour
and a half. We enjoyed a scenic lunch
and the boys made up great stories about
the seemingly-abandoned houses on top
the summit. We then made our descent
and it only took an hour. Not one camper
complained or tried to quit. They were
all awesome and did an awesome job.
When we got back to camp, everyone
enjoyed quiet time until we cooked bacon
burgers at 6:00 PM. We then surprised
the campers with cake that Emily had
prepared and they were very happy. We
then talked around the fire until they all
headed off to bed by 9:00 PM.
Day Three -

The camp was awake by 8:00 AM
and we began breaking down tents and
cleaning up the campsite. We then ate

breakfast and were ready to go by 10:00.
With an hour to kill we went across the
street to the main campgrounds and went
and hung out on the beach and swing
set for an hour and enjoyed the views.
At 11:00 we left Cathedral Pines and
made our way back to Kieve. We stopped
halfway and enjoyed a massive lunch at
Big G's. We rolled into camp around 3:15
PM and then put away all our gear. It was
a very successful trip and the campers
did it flawlessly.

237

North Glenayr

Camden Hills State Park - Primer
Will Phifer, HBC

Day 1, 7/26

After packing the night before, the
boys of North Glenayr woke up, ate
breakfast in Pasquaney, cleaned the
cabin, and brought their gear up to the
Buck building. Waiting there for us was
our van and chase vehicle. We took our
time packing our gear into the box trailer
in tow behind the van. Once we knew
that everything was packed up, and that
Reid had checked us off, we drove north
on Route 1 into Camden, Maine, and
from there to Camden Hills State Park.

When we arrived at our campsite,
it was still raining, as it had been for
most of the morning. As our boys tried
desperately to set up their tents quickly,
the counselors focused on setting up
the rain tarp. After a long, excruciating
process in which everyone got wet, we
had cold cut sandwiches for lunch under
the tarp. Just as we were losing all hope
for a decent day, the rain slowly began to
dribble, and then not fall at all.

We decided to change into some dry
clothes in order to hike Mt. Battle, one
of two mountains we would eventually
summit. We crossed Route 1 to get to the
trailhead, which began on the car road
up the mountain. Eventually, we found a
hiking trail on the right side of the road,
which we gladly used. The boys intensely
enjoyed the hike much more than toiling
in the rain. When we arrived at the top,
a gorgeous view and a large stone tower
awaited us. We enjoyed the view while
snacking on Goldfish, and then ascended
the tower to get an even better view. Just
as we were getting ready to head down,
the fog closed in around the view. We
had gotten there just in time. After an
uneventful trip down the mountain, we
ate bacon cheeseburgers expertly cooked
by Vern. Medical minute and some
S 'Mores rounded out the night.
Day 2, 7/27

Today, we awoke to sounds of burps
at the campsite. We had a leisurely
breakfast of bacon, egg, and cheese
bagel sandwiches, packed up our gear,
and drove across Route 1 to get to the

trailhead of Mt. Megunticook. While
the climb up this mountain was slightly
more strenuous, the boys practically ran
up the mountain with no complaints. As
it was sunny, the view was spectacular,
and we were much higher than we were
the day before on Mt. Battle. From our
delightful perch, we could see the tower
we had climbed yesterday, as well
as many sailboats on Penobscot Bay.
Snickers bars flew into the mix, which
the boys enjoyed.

The climb down felt even easier than
yesterday's, and before we knew it, we
were driving back to camp while eating
peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Our
return to camp was accented that night
by our air guitar skit to "Wake Me Up
Before You Go-Go," when we had a fake
freak gasoline fight accident.

North Glenayr
Fort Island
Will Phifer, HBC

Day 1, 8/4

Even though it was Sunday, a day
when camp usually sleeps in, the boys
of North Glenayr woke up early to catch
the tide moving out of the Great Salt Bay
and into the Damariscotta River at the
perfect time. When the cabin was clean,
and the boys had sealed their bags with
all their gear inside, we moved up to the
bus in front of the trip shack. Once all
our gear and bags were loaded into the
bus, we had a little time to attend flag
before we piled into the bus to drive
to Damariscotta. Before we left camp,
though, we decided to stop at the camp
store so that some boys could purchase
water bottles and other necessary gear.

We arrived in town swiftly, and
quickly unloaded all our gear onto the
boat launch. Reid, our bus driver, left us
to load our gear into our boats before we
departed. After we made sure we had all
our gear in our boats, we pushed off the
launch one by one. Our paddling a little
shaky at first, we soon figured out how to
steer and how to paddle correctly.

We travelled a few hours until our first
snack. Nature Valley bars, before arriving
at Nick Donaldson's grandparents'
house. Nick's grandparents had invited

238

us to their dock to enjoy doughnuts and
cinnamon rolls as we passed by on the
river. We gladly accepted their invitation,
and after we had had a good amount
of sugar, we pushed off their dock and
paddled downriver.

After a little more paddling, at which
point Pablo Garza was putting in
especially good strokes and enjoying
himself, we decided to stop on the rocks
on the eastern shore to eat cold cut
sandwiches for lunch. The delicious mid-
day meal in our bellies, we continued our
paddle, only to discover rain clouds in
the distance to the west. Thomas Henry
enjoyed paddling through the big waves
the storm brought along with it.

We paddled as hard as we could, but
the thunderclouds eventually reached
us, and we had to pull over onto a
nearby point. Ben Talpey was taken
aback by the power of the thunderstorm
as it approached. We pulled our canoes
up onto the shore and threw our gear
onto the rocks above the water. The
counselors set up a tarp to hide under as
the rain passed over the point we were
momentarily camped upon. After about
an hour, the rain stopped, and the sun
came out.

Our cabin decided to continue
paddling to Fort Island, so we reloaded
our gear into our canoes and persevered
onwards. North Glenayr arrived at Fort
Island just as the sun was setting over the
mainland evergreens. On the island, we
had a tent clinic as Vern and Haywood
set up dinner. That night, the cabin ate
delicious cheese steak wraps once camp
had been set up. Directly after dinner,
the boys passed out in their respective
tents from exhaustion, which was Dean
Maner's favorite part of the day.

Day 2, 8/5

After a long, good night's sleep, North
Glenayr awoke late because of the
previous day's extra difficult paddle. I
cooked pancakes with butter, M&Ms, and
Snickers pieces while the boys relaxed
around the campsite. After breakfast,
there was a lot of time for individual
activities for campers to participate in.
While some went fishing on the rocks,
others made forts around the island. Jack
Lonergan enjoyed the mini adventures
he participated in during this time. Reed
Patricelli identified clay on the shoreline
and made pots with his friends. Although
we had packed doubledown chicken
sandwiches, the boys decided that we
should skip lunch and instead have a
snack of mussels and soft shell clams.
Jack Thibodeau led the charge when it
came to collecting the mussels, and he
was the one digging up the clams with
a trowel we brought in the k-wan. When
we had enough mussels and clams, we
cooked them in salt water with butter
and garlic powder. Although some boys
had never tried mussels, almost the
entire cabin enjoyed them immensely,
including Max Bensley.

After our mussel snack, Nathaniel
Cimral enjoyed an epic energy battle with
Reed and Dean just before dinner started.
Just as it was beginning to get dark and
our stomachs began to rumble again, we
cooked meats and pasta for an extremely
cheesy DANK. Soon after dinner, we
sat as a cabin around the campfire to
eat S 'Mores, and Gabriel de Kergorlay
enjoyed playing Mafia. After the game.
Brock Froschauer liked how the cabin
exchanged both scary and funny stories.
Once everyone began to be sleepy, the
boys started heading off to their tents for

a good night's sleep to recharge for the
paddle the next day.
Day 3, 8/6

We woke up to brilliant sunshine on
our island. As we waited for the tide to
come all the way in, we lazed about the
island and eventually cooked bacon,
egg, and cheese bagel sandwiches for
breakfast. At around noon, when the
tide was all the way up and beginning
to recede, we checked the campsite for
trash, loaded up our canoes with our
gear, and left Fort Island. We paddled in
headwinds down the Damariscotta River
to South Bristol, which was not an easy
trip. Many of our boats were pushed to
shore by tlie never-ending gusts.

When we arrived at South Bristol, our
assumed takeout point, we discovered
that our van and trailer had accidentally
been dropped off at Fort William Henry,
a few miles away. Never too tired for the
task, the boys of North Glenaw powered
through and paddled partially across
John's Bay towards Pemaquid Beach,
where Kieve usually has beach days.
Once we were next to John's Island, near
the middle of the bay, we decided that
we would, in the spirit of Allagash and
Long Voyage trips, use our rain tarp to
sail across the other half of the bay. Nick
Donaldson enjoyed the sailing the most.
As real sailboats passed us and observed
the odd spectacle of ten-year-old boys
in metal canoes holding up a rain tarp
to move instead of using their paddles,
we arrived at Fort William Henry. We
located the van left in the parking lot for
us, loaded up our gear and our canoes,
and drove swiftly back to camp just in
time for dinner. Even though this seemed
like a simple three-day trip, the boys
were pushed to their limits, and they
eventually came out on top as kings of
the Damariscotta River.

North Townsend

Mt. Megunticook - Primer

Zach Atchinson, HBC

Day 1 - 7/30

Having packed the evening prior, we
were chomping at the bit to get out of
camp. After celebrating the life of Nat
Shenton briefly during breakfast, we
were finally able to load up the van and
head out on the road. Zooming north to
Camden Hills State Park, the excitement
was palpable among the group. Finally
arriving at the park, we set up camp and
made up some sandwiches before getting
ready for our first hike. From the trailhead
we started up the steep rocky path
toward the summit of Mount Battle. With
strategic breaks occurring periodically
throughout the hike to assure hydration
and snack attacks, we made our way
easily to the summit. The view was truly
breathtaking. We obser\^ed the lovely
Penobscot Bay from atop the mountain,
taking in the beauty of the scene while
exploring the ancient fort atop the peak.
Everybody learned a lot about the histor}^
of the mountain and region, specifically
during the Civil War era.

On our way back to the campsite after
descending the mountain, we decided to
make a pit stop for another adventure.
Taking the van south a little bit, we
stopped at the Breakwater Lighthouse
and walked along the breakw^ater as the
afternoon faded to evening, enjoying the
ocean breeze and scenic boats coming
in to port. When we finally returned to
the park we quickly got to work on our
delicious cheesy eggy bacon steak bomb
diimer, which we enjoyed around a
roaring campfire that Wayne and Elias
helped keep burning. Patch, Lucas, and
Sam particularly enjoyed their foray
into the cheesesteak world! Caleb and
Gavin were real leaders when it came to
showing good manners and helping to
clean up, w^hich everybody appreciated.
The beautiful evening sky faded to black
and under a sparkling canopy of stars we
traded scary stories as the fire died down
(with Dillon even coming up with his
ovm story to scare Charlie!), eventually
retiring to our tents for a much-needed
night of sleep.

240

Day 2 - 7/31

After our well-deserved rest, we rose to
find another glorious Maine day waiting
for us. We greeted the day by playing
around in the grass for a while before
beginning with breakfast. We also enjoyed
a plethora of bacon to celebrate Wayne's
birthday. Sausage, bacon, egg and cheese
on a bagel really hit the spot, and after a
short break to digest (and jump start the
minivan), we packed up the campsite.
Though rolling up tents offered its own
unique challenges, we finally got the
gear in the car and were on our way to
tackle the mighty Mount Megunticook.
The path from the trailhead began - to
Mark's excitement - easily enough, but
soon evolved to include some borderline
treacherous terrain. Alex, Gavin, and
Rob helped lead the hike from the front
of the pack.

The delicious views of the ocean that
were presented throughout the hike
were far more picturesque than the one
offered by the summit, so after a few
pictures were taken atop the peak we
descended for a snack overlooking the
bay. Chocolate Rice Krispy Treats were
overwhelmingly popular with the group,
giving us the energetic boost we needed
to make it down the mountain in time.
With a birthday to keep celebrating, we
stopped off at Round Top for ice cream
before returning to camp. We were
greeted by our Bacon Queen Mimi and
a round of celebratory cupcakes, which
we devoured as we began to settle back
into camp.

North Townsend

Fort Island

Zach Atchinson, HBC

Day 1 - 8/7

Because our departure had to be timed
with the tide, we were fortunate to have a
lazy morning sleeping in at camp. When
we finally loaded up the orange bus, we
were thrilled to finally be taking off on
our trip! A short drive to South Bristol
put us in the right spot for our put-in,
and we quickly loaded the boats in the
water before taking off. Though the day's
paddle was a mere 2 miles, we were still
getting our sea legs and had to paddle

around the bay a bit before we were
fully comfortable cruising into the open
ocean.

After passing a dazzling array of
beautiful boats and waterfront properties,
we finally arrived at the legendary Fort
Island. We were welcomed by a group
from the nearby Chewonki camp, as well
as a couple families exploring the island.
We decided to circle the isle in hopes
of finding a more secluded campsite,
but upon returning to the beach we
were forced to pull up with the others.
Thankfully, the Chewonki group on the
island had foreseen our dilemma and
graciously consolidated their campsite
to make room for us. It was truly an
impressive example of two like-minded
organizations working together for the
common good (in this case, two groups
having space for shelter and food
preparation).

After a quick lunch of rocket fuel, we
set up our tents and set off exploring the
island. Alex and Elias took off quickly
to find new undiscovered parts of the
island. Because they were camped
around the only existing fire pit on the
island, we decided to shuffle the trip
menu and have Dank on our first night on
trip! Rob ate about 10 servings of dinner,
happily inhaling whatever extra dinner

241

was put in front of him. With a delicious
combination of bacon, cheese, and pasta
settling in our stomachs, we headed to
our tents for a restful night of sleep.
Day 2 - 8/8

Our plan to have an extended sleep-
in was crushed as the other group on
the island rose early to catch the tide,
waking us up in the process! Caleb was
among the first awake, helping everyone
else greet the wonders of a new day. As
we rubbed the sleep from our eyes in
the overcast morning, everyone rallied
around the cooking area and the M&M
pancakes being prepared within. One by
one the steaming sweet cakes came off
the griddle to be promptly devoured.

Once breakfast was concluded, we set
to work building a fire that would be
kindled for the entire day. Considering
the 2,000 camper points on the line,
the longevity of the fire was in the best
interest of all. While some of the group
tended the fire, the rest took advantage
of the island's Inter-Tidal Zones with
rampant exploration and swimming.
The lower tides meant that formerly
submerged rocks were becoming full-
fledged extensions of the island, and
everyone took advantage of the natural
opportunities provided by this new
landscape. Sam played with clay while
Patch, Lucas, and Caleb tried their
hands at crab fighting, and Dillon and
Wayne swam around the bay among the
wet rocks. Mark conquered one island,
leaving a flag of sorts for whoever dared
venture there next.

Lunch consisted of hot roast beef
sandwiches and Oreos, which kept the
energy level up through the afternoon as
Gavin created imaginary games. Further
exploration into the island was warranted
by the fire's seemingly unquenchable
thirst for wood. After a fashion we were
joined by five Canadian women eager
to find the island's namesake fort, and
they seemed mildly disappointed that
the "fort" was little more than an array
of rock walls buried around the island.
Nursing the fire, Charlie and Gavin went
above and beyond collecting firewood
from all over the island.

With our new neighbors camping
adjacent to the fire pit, we rushed to cook

our double bacon cheeseburgers before
enjoying S'Mores for dessert. We ceded
the firepit to the Canadians after we
finished heating our marshmallows by
the flame, letting them enjoy the warmth
as we swapped scary stories back by the
tents. With the night having fallen on a
full day of island playtime, we headed
back once more to our tents.
Day 3 - 8/9

Our 6 AM wakeup was a sharp
departure from our typical lazy mornings,
and we hurried to take down the tents and
break down camp. With a strict deadline
for departure set by the tides, we moved
swiftly as we scarfed down bacon, egg &
cheeses, and once the tents were rolled
up and packed away, we began loading
the boats on the beach. With a long 9-
mile paddle through open ocean ahead
of us, the stakes for the day were high.
Even more troubling was the constant
rain, grey fog in every direction, and
thunder rolling in from the mainland.
With no lightning to be seen, however,
we decided to take off down the water.

Moving at breakneck speed, we
successfully navigated our way across
the water and past an array of fishing
boats to finally reach our destination in
Damariscotta. When the shoreline finally
came into view, we called Bob Linker
to arrange our pickup and proceeded
to zoom into shore. At the public boat
launch downtown we quickly hauled the
boats out of the water and piled our gear
to the side, displaying an efficiency that
was easily replicated when it came time
to load the trailer and head back to camp.
The chores of cleaning and unpacking
were finished in record time, leaving us
free to venture back into town for some
Round Top ice cream as the cherry on
top of our lovely trip.

242

South Bunkerhill
Hog Island
Henry Clark, HBC

Day One:

The gentlemen of South Bunker
Hill started their primer trip around
eleven a.m. when we arrived at Bremen
Landing. Within minutes Hog Island
Ryan and Audubon Aaron boated over to
meet us and help ferry all our gear across
the channel towards our destination,
Hog Island. Upon arrival via fun-yak, we
received a wonderful and informational
tour from Aaron and then set up camp as
I made PB&Js for the guys.

After that we quickly got back into
our kayaks and followed Ryan on his
paddleboard to a mussel bar where we all
took off our shoes and explored with an
unexplainable tingling feeling under our
feet. After exploring for about an hour, we
got back in our boats and paddled north
of Hog Island towards Seal Island where
we got to see some harbor seals and their
yearlings up close. We continued our
paddle to an island east of the seals. Here
we explored and then did a fun cliff jump
off into the ocean.

When we got back to Hog Island we
fortunately got to check out the lab
and museum where the guys learned
everything there is to know about the
surrounding habitats and the animals
and plants in them. We finished the
night with bacon burgers and S 'Mores by
the fire.
Day Two

We woke up on day two to rain on the
roofs of our tents, but once we started
moving and getting our M&M pancakes
in our stomachs, it slowed down. Once
breakfast was cleaned up, we hit the trail
with Aaron and Ryan. Along the hike
we learned about the history of the area
and eventually stopped at a shelled cove
where Native Americans left piles and
piles of shells after they were done eating
what was inside.

We eventually made it to an area
covered by spruce trees. Here we made
our own version of a Native American
wigwam. After two and a half hours of
finding strong trees to use as poles and
searching for birch bark as the outside

243

covering and even collecting tree roots to
use as rope to tie everything together, our
wigw^am w^as complete and we celebrated
by eating a snack of peanut butter and
Ritz crackers inside.

After a quick rest in a large mossy area
a few hundred yards from our wigv^am
we headed back towards camp. Once
we got back to the camping area, we ate
PB&Js and headed back to camp with a
successful, awesome, and informational
experience under our belts.

South Bunkerhill Trip Report
White Mountains
Henry Clark, HBC

Day One:

We woke up on the morning of our
first day with unbearable excitement
for the trip to begin. We went up to flag
with packed bags and hit the road after
breakfast. With Spencer's incredible
navigation skills we were able to get
to our campsite in record time. At the
campsite we set up camp and relaxed.
For dinner we ate Philly cheesesteaks
with peppers and onions. With full
stomachs we finished off the night with
a game of Mafia around the fire.
Day Two:

The gentleman of South Bunker Hill
awoke at 6:30 on the morning of day two
with one goal on our minds; summiting
Mt. Washington. With a breakfast of milk
and granola we quickly headed for the
trailhead. The parking lot was packed
with people who all shared the same goal
as ours. We quickly hit the trail and with
a good pace we were above the tree line
within two hours.

On our way up group after group was
coming down, warning us that the wind
was too strong up there and that they
had to turn around. Although we did
take note of the possible 80 mph winds,
we kept trucking forward as we are
from Kieve and wind doesn't interfere
with our goals. As we got closer to the
summit the wind revealed itself to us in
full force, but we did not back dovm as
the other groups did. The summit was
incredible, although it was very cold and
we couldn't stand up as the wind was
blowing so hard, the views were worth

it.

We descended the mountain and
headed back to our campsite. For dinner
we ate steamboats, and went to bed early
as we were all extremely tired from the
8-hour hike we had just endured.
Day Three:

On day three we all slept in and
eventually stumbled out of our tents to
a breakfast of sausage, egg, and cheese
bagels. Our plan for the day was to
hike out to Emerald Pools and spend it
swimming and cliff jumping. So after
breakfast we packed up lunch and drove
to the other side of the White Mountain
National Forest. After spending some
time trying to find the trailhead out
to Emerald Pools, we were finally
successful and eagerly made our way.
Immediately we all jumped off the cliff
and began swimming in the cold water.
We entertained ourselves for the next
few hours jumping into the water and
building dams in the river. Sometime in
the middle we ate cold cuts and Goldfish.
Before we knew it, four o'clock had
rolled around, so we headed back to the
campsite. For dinner we ate chicken dank
and, to determine who got to eat first, we
had a full on Harry Potter Wizard duel.
We ended the night around the fire with
multiple games of Mafia.
Day Four:

Day four began with a breakfast of milk
and granola. We packed lunch again and
drove 45 minutes to the trailhead of Mt.
Willard. Although the hike itself was
only an hour up, the view was worth
hiking ten times that amount. Although
the top was crowded with multiple
different groups, we found our own spot
and hung out up there for a half horn-
enjoy ing the views. We made our way
down the mountain and back to the van.
Driving back to the campsite we listened
and sang along to Spencer's wide variety
of good music. When we got back, we
entertained ourselves with Frisbee golf
and slack-lining. For dinner we ate bacon
cheeseburgers and ended the night per
tradition with a game of Mafia.
Day Five:

On our last day of the trip we woke up
and ate two pancakes a person. We then
packed up camp and hopped in the van

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for the three-hour ride back to camp. On
the way we stopped at McDonald's and
filled our stomachs with as much food as
possible. Before we knew it the trip was
over and we were back at camp being
welcomed by our Kieve friends.

South Cunningham
Hog Island - Primer
C.J. Richardson, HBC

Day One:

The boys of South Cunningham woke
up and went to breakfast at Pasquaney.
After we finished eating our breakfast,
we packed up our van and headed out
to Bremen, Kieve's ocean front property.
After the drive Ryan and Aaron, two
Kieve employees, met us and we packed
up our gear on a motorboat. We paddled
over in kayaks to Hog Island and quickly
started learning new things about the
island. Ryan and Aaron had so many
cool facts and answered many questions
the campers had.

We enjoyed cold cut sandwiches for
lunch and cheese steaks for dinner.
During the day we went on a nice day
hike around the island and were shown
a lot of different edible things on the
island. After dinner we learned about
phosphorescence and got the chance to
see it first hand in the ocean. We then ate
S'Mores and went to sleep.
Day Two:

On day two we woke up and ate some
delicious bacon, sausage, egg and cheese
sandwiches. We then packed up our gear,
broke down our tents, and got ready for
a day paddle over to Crotch Island. We
were taught about intertidal zones from
Aaron. We then got to swim in the ocean
and jump off some cool rocks. We then
paddled back to Hog Island and then to
Bremen to return to Kieve.

South Cunningham
White Mountains
C.J. Richardson, HBC

Day 1

The boys of South Cunningham
woke up in the cabin with a whole lot
of enthusiasm because they knew that
they were about to leave on their trip.
They quickly finished packing up in
the morning and went up to breakfast
at Pasquaney. After they enjoyed their
last meal cooked in camp, they packed
up the trailer, filled their water bottles,
and hopped into the van ready for the
White Mountains. Once the drive to

245

our campsite, called Barnes Field, was
over, the boys of South Cunningham
started to unpack the trailer and set up
our campsite. The boys set up their tents,
moved their sleeping bags and sleeping
pads into their tents, and learned how to
set up a tarp just in case a rainstorm were
to move in. We enjoyed scrumptious
Philly cheesesteaks for dinner. The boys
went to sleep right away after dinner
because they all knew that tomorrow
was the day when they were going to
climb the tallest mountain East of the
Mississippi River. Mt. Washington!
Day 2

South Cunningham woke up early this
morning to prepare for the day's climb
up Washington. Right from the start
we moved quickly in an effort to give
ourselves as much time as possible for
the climb. After a breakfast of granola and
loading up the van, we rolled up Pinkham
Notch and arrived at the Tuckerman's
Ravine trail. A little after 8 AM we began
the hike. The pace was a little slow off
the bat as the trail cut relentlessly up the
side of the mountain but after a half hour
the boys found their rhythm and things
began to really move along.

About a third of the way up we turned
onto Lion's Head Trail and prepared for
what was easily the toughest part of the
climb. In spite of the serious difficulty of
the stretch, the boys pushed right through
it and before long we found ourselves
sitting on the rocks looking down into
the cliffs of Tuckerman's Ravine to our
left and up at Mount Washington to the
right. From there we pushed up the last
couple miles of above tree line hiking and
arrived at the peak. We took our time up
top, soaking in the views and enjoying
our peanut butter jelly sandwiches before
turning back down the mountain. After
a long day we arrived back at the vans
around 5:30 and returned to the campsite
for a hearty dinner of double downs. The
boys went to sleep soon after, exhausted
from the day's work but content knowing
that their biggest task was complete.
Day 3

The boys of South Cunningham got
a late morning for doing a fantastic job
hiking Mt. Washington the day before.
We had sausage, bacon, egg and cheeses

for breakfast. The boys packed up their
bags for the trip to Arethusa Falls, which
is the tallest waterfall in New Hampshire.
Once the van was packed, we headed out
to the falls, one of the longer car rides,
but definitely worth the extra time in the
van.

The hike was an average one; it was not
a long hike but there were plenty of little
hills, making it a tad bit more difficult.
The boys were very excited about the
trip though, and had no problem with
the hike. Upon the arrival to Arethusa
Falls, the kids were stunned at how big it
was and immediately changed into their
bathing suits to swim in the pools and
stand under the rushing water falling
from above. They loved sliding down
the over flown stream from water hole
to water hole. We had a quick snack
composed of cheese-its. A short hike
back to the van and we drove back to
the campsite. We had huge double bacon
cheeseburgers and went to sleep.
Day 4

Day four was the last full day of our
trip and the boys of South Cunningham
wanted to take full advantage of it. After
another breakfast of sausage, bacon, egg
and cheese sandwiches, the boys packed
up their daypacks and hopped into the
van. We drove a little ways to Crawford's
Notch, a beautiful part of the Whites.
Since it was their third time hiking, the

boys had no problem with the hike.

We quickly made it to the top of Mt.
Willard and took in all the magnificent
views. After a little bit of rain at the top
and rice crispy treats, we started our
descent back to the vans. Once we were
done with the hike the boys were very
excited to get back to the campsite and
make the last campfire of our trip. We
enjoyed "Dank", Kieve's version of mac
and cheese, and S'Mores. We then stayed
up late around the fire soaking up the
entire trip and telling different stories
before we called it a night.
Day 5

We woke at a reasonable time and
started to breakdown camp on day five.
We started by packing up our sleeping
bags, sleeping pads, and clothes. The
cabin then took down their tents and
started to sweep the campsite for trash
that we missed throughout our time at
the campsite. After we were all set and
everything was ready to go, the boys
got into the van, were given Pop Tarts
for breakfast, and settled in for the long
car ride back to Kieve. We stopped in
Portland, Maine at a Chipotle for lunch,
which all the kids really enjoyed. We then
made our entrance back at Kieve driving
into camp, blasting music and honking
the horn. The boys of South Cunningham
had completed the White Mountain trip
and had an absolute blast!

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South Townsend Trip Report

Hog Island

Jack Marston, HBC

Day 1, July 28

Having packed up and cleaned the
cabin the night before, the boys of South
Townsend were ready and eager to leave
for Hog Island the morning of departure,
July 28th. We carried our bags up to the
Buck, grabbed our food and gear, loaded
up the van and support vehicle, and
headed out for Bremen. Upon arrival,
the lads unloaded the gear and brought
it down to the dock for our guide 'Hog
Island' Ryan to ferry over to the island.

While he took care of our bags, we
grabbed kayaks and went for a paddle.
We explored the ruins of an enormous
old sunken ship, only a third of which
is visible above water. Once practiced at
the art of operating the kayaks, the boys
crossed across the bay around to the
back side of Hog Island and landed on
the beach. Ryan greeted us at the water's
edge, and since it was raining, ushered
us into the Fish room. As we waited for
the rain to let up, Ryan built a fire to help
us dry off.

We set up our tents in our much-
appreciated shelter, and when the rain
came to a stop, we carried them out to
Tent City. With our camp established
and a leisurely lunch prepared and
consumed, Ryan took us out on a hike to
explore the island. He showed us several
deliciously edible plants, how to catch
sand fleas, and evidence of the ancient
Native Americans who once inhabited
the island. We skipped stones, searched
for crawdads, and got our first taste
of hiking in preparation for the White
Mountains.

After the hike, Ryan showed us the
osprey nest and the live camera feed that
broadcasts the birds' activity to the world
via Internet. Next, he took us to the lab
where we got to interact with aquatic
creatures in the touch tank. He showed us
how feathers work under a microscope,
taught us about different tracks animals
make on the island, shared other fun
facts about the ecology of the island and
its surrounding waters.

For dinner, we grilled up bacon

248

cheeseburgers much to everyone's
delight. John surprised us with cakes
that his mother delivered personally.

Once everyone v^as stuffed, Ryan told
us to get ready for another hike. As the
sun had already set, campers grabbed
their headlamps. However, we set off
without artificial light, guided by the
stars and the moon, and, of course, Ryan.
To make things even more interesting,
Ryan had us leave our shoes at camp,
and our hike was one with neither light
nor footwear.

We walked slowly, feeling out each
step. We adapted our gait to the variety
of terrain: grass, gravel, dirt, and mud.
Carefully, we proceeded down a path we
did not know, unsure of our destination.
At one point, Ryan had Cholnoky and I
go ahead in the dark a couple hundred
feet, sending kids one by one through
the darkness to find us. Though an
eerie experience, it filled the boys with
confidence having done it.

Our final destination was a bog,
where Ryan let us turn our lights on
and showed us plants that ate bugs to
get nutrients that they were otherwise
lacking. Making our way back with light
was much easier, and we had conquered
many of our fears on the way out. Back at
camp, Ryan showed us the magic of the
Maine bioluminescence before sending
us to bed exhausted.
Day 2, July 29

The next morning we broke down the
tents and had a slow breakfast of bacon,
egg and cheeses, followed by another
hike to search for sea critters using fishing
rods, mussel rakes, and nets in the Native
American style. We brought a couple
young lobsters back to camp along with

some small fish. Next, we harvested and
cleaned over 50 mussels that we steamed
up with mint, bay leaves, chives, and
butter under a blanket of seaweed. We
kept the pearls found within them and,
happy with what we had done and eaten,
headed back for camp.

South Townsend Trip Report
White Mountains
Jack Marston, HBC

Day 1

Having eaten the last of Momma
Marsh's cake the night before amidst
packing up and cleaning the cabin, the
boys were ready to depart in the morning.
We picked up some last minute water
bottles and headed west for the White
Mountains. Halfway there, we stopped
at Wal-Mart to grab some batteries and
surprise snacks along with a packed
lunch of cold-cut sandwiches.

After lunch and bathroom break,
we finished the drive and arrived at
our campsite in Barnes Field, White
Mountain National Forest. We checked in
and immediately set up our tents for fear
of imminent rain. With no structure over
our picnic tables, we chose to pitch a tarp
in the woods right next to the campsite.
We cooked up Philly cheesesteaks, and
in the process had to relocate to under
the tarp due to rain. The rain passed
quickly, and we were able to eat in the
open air. Stuffed, we had a small fire and
went to bed early in preparation for a big
day of hiking the next day.
Day 2

We woke up at 7:30 and had oatmeal
for breakfast. After eating, we quickly
prepared for our big hike: Mount

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Washington, the highest peak on the
east coast. Packing our daypacks with
food, water, and the necessary clothing,
we hopped in the van and got on the
trail. The weather seemed nice, but the
temperatures recorded from the summit
weather station were awftilly low and
very windy. We went for it anyway, and
we had a smooth hike to the ranger station
and lean-tos at the halfway point.

However, the temperatures up top
were below zero with the wind chill, and
we decided we were not prepared for
such grueling climate. After a lunch of
sun-butter and jelly, we backed off and
headed down to the campsite to rest for
another attempt the next day.

In camp, we had a short rest and then
cooked up double-downs for dinner
— consisting of two chicken patties
marinated in ranch dressing, topped
with bacon and cheese on a hamburger
bun. We ate well and went to bed early
after a small fire.
Days

Game day. I woke up at 6:30 and put
the water on the heat. By 7, the boys
were up and packing their day packs for
our second attempt at summitting the
beast that is Mount Washington. Before
they ate, they were ready to move. After
an efficient breakfast (oatmeal again),
we made moves to the trailhead. After
registering our party, we were on the
trail at 8:45 - already far ahead of our
progress the day before. We made it to
the halfway point in less than 2 hours. It
was far too early for lunch, so we pushed
on. Snacking and hydrating gave us short
breaks, but we saved lunch for the top.

The climb became steeper as we
ascended Tuckerman's Ravine. A
beautiful trail , with views of mountainous
cascades, the ravine can be quite
distracting as you try to pay attention
to your footing. Once on the ridge, we
still had .8 miles to go. With blood sugar
running low, this last mile seemed to drag
on forever. Many lost faith in themselves,
but at last, we all made it. We rejoiced
on top - though somewhat perturbed by
the amount of vehicles and non-hiking
crowds. Another lunch of sun-butter and
jelly was followed by Doritos purchased
in celebration from the summit shop.

After taking in some sun from the
summit, we snagged a picture on the
top and headed down the way we came.
With much lighter hearts, the boys hit
the trail like we had just started our day.
Once we descended the steep section
of the ravine, we had a snack of Rice
Krispies, the sugary splendor of which
we felt immediately. A few hours later,
we were done, and our 10.5-hour journey
was concluded. Back at the campsite, we
cooked up some bacon cheeseburgers
and rejoiced on our accomplishment.
Too tired for S 'Mores, we hit the hay and
slept like champions.
Day 4

True to their nature, the boys 'slept
in' to 7:30. Tired, but relieved to have
finished Mt. Washington, we had a slow
delicious breakfast of sausage, bacon, egg
and cheeses on bagels, a welcome change
from oatmeal.

Around 10:30, we hopped in the van
and headed to the Emerald Pool trailhead.
After a quick, flat hike, we stripped
down to our suits and began a full day of
swimming in the crystal clear mountain
pool. We jumped off the ledges, roughly
13 feet over the deepest part of the pool.
Hamish jumped 64 times, and others
jumped half as many times. Around
mid-day, a Wavus group showed up and
shared the spot. The sun was in and out
of clouds and the water was chilly, but
we had a great day at the beautiful spot.
We had several rounds of snacks and a
lunch of pepperoni and cheese.

Finally, as 5:30 rolled around, we
decided to head out so that we could buy
more wood for a fire for S 'Mores and cook
dinner. Dinner consisted of a Kieve staple,
known by the glorified name of 'Dank.'
Dank is the cheesiest mac-and-cheese
known to man, and usually contains
some forms of meat and vegetables.
Our blend carried caramelized onions,
pepperoni bits, and bacon. Just a dab will
do you, and most of the boys were full
after firsts. Their gluttonous counselors
paid the price of taking larger servings
and were paralyzed by food comas. Once
we could move again, S'Mores were had,
and the marshmallows flowed like the
waters of the surrounding mountains.
After a couple scary stories, the young

250

gentlemen of South Townsend hurried
off to their tents.
Day 5

Well-rested and energized by the
morning sun, we cooked up batch after
batch of M&M pancakes with bacon and
syrup. After a long morning of eating
and cleaning, we packed up camp and
hopped in the van around 11:30. Heading
south, we stopped off at Glen Ellis Falls
- a 64-foot waterfall and one of the most
beautiful accessible spots of the White
Mountains just a rough .2 miles from
the parking lot. Well worth the hike, we
were back in the van a quick 20 minutes
later heading back to camp. We stopped
off at McDonald's for lunch, running up
an impressive tab of just over $100. After
lunch, it was straight back to camp to
unload all the generated mess of our trip.
We cleaned up, set up our tents to air out,
and caught the end of John Goodman's
'National Treasure' day.

North Bunkerhill
Bald Rock Mountain
Ricky Nix, HBC

August 2nd

The men of North Bunkerhill woke to
a gloomy day at Kieve. Spirits were high
nonetheless! At breakfast I was Napoleon
and the cabin were my fellow exiles! We
hit the road soon after being ousted from
Kieve. Upon arriving at the campsite, the
men set up their tents eagerly and then
went about planning skits to see who
would get lunch first.

After our lunch of cold cuts we
embarked on our journey for our first
hike: Maiden Cliffs. The hike was a short
one and it rained for most of it, but the
boys trucked through it like the animals
that they are! The top had a great view of
the bay and the boys reveled in it. After
the hike, we headed back to camp where
the boys built a fire. While they built
the fire, the counselors took their time
making the dankest Philly cheesesteaks
this side of the New Hampshire border.
The cheese steaks were devoured
and the boys sat by the fire over fully
satisfied stomachs and reflected on the
day of hiking. After a midnight snack of
marshmallows, the boys snuggled up in

their tents and waited for the day ahead.
August 3rd

We woke to similar weather for our
second day of hiking. The boys slept in
and were very well-rested by the time
they decided to roll out of bed. First thing
the boys did after waking was take down
camp and sweep it for any loose trash.
The boys are very well-versed on the
importance of LNT. We then feasted on a
meal of bacon, eggs, and bagels. The boys
were pleased with the meal and let the
three of us counselors live to see another
day. We did another round of sweeping
and then packed up the rest of the gear.

After loading everything into the
van, we headed off towards Bald Rock
Mountain. Max Carneal hurt his leg, so
he and J. P. stayed behind while the rest
of the cabin ventured up the mountain.
It took us about an hour to get to the top
and when we arrived the weather had
cleared and we had a great view of the
ocean. At the top we had a meal of PBHJ
and then headed back down. This put
a close on our primer to Bald Rock and
an excitement in our hearts for the trip
down the Croix that was to come.

North Bunkerhill
Saint Croix River
Ricky Nix, HBC

August 8th

The men of North Bunkerhill woke
at daybreak; the sun had not even risen
by the time these boys were up and at
'em. We had a meager breakfast of cereal
and orange juice, packed up the bus and
headed out. Henry Kennedy drove us
four hours to our put-in at Castle Road.
No carsickness was had, thank God. We
got into the water at around 11 a.m. and
set off for our first campsite on Birch
Island. We got to Birch Island in around
two hours. We set up camp and had a
lunch of PBHJs. After a small rest period
we played a few games and tried to build
a fire. Several of the boys (Seb Murrell,
Max Gesner, and Joe Geniesse) made
a one-match fire using wet wood and
kindling. It was very impressive. Dinner
was an epic meal of bacon, chicken,
ranch, burgers, which was enjoyed by all.
The cabin then decided to call it an early

251

night and tucked ourselves into our tents
awaiting the epic trip that lay ahead.
August 9th

We woke early to a very stormy day.
After packing up our camp, we had a
meal of Pop Tarts and headed out into
the storm. This was a difficult day of
paddling. We were tasked to paddle nine
miles on the lake, which, in itself, is a
trying task for twelve-year-olds. Add to
that a relentless storm and you have a
terrible combination.

We put our canoes into the water
at around 9 a.m. The rain would not
let up and the campers were cold and
wet; nonetheless, they really showed
perseverance. Their moods never got out
of hand, they played it cool and were
in high spirits for the majority of this
really tough paddle. We stopped halfway
through and had a quick lunch of cold
cut sandwiches.

After lunch we got back out into the
storm and trucked on until we made it
to our campsite on Todd's Island. Todd's
Island is notorious for being one of the
best campsites on the entire trip. Due
to the inclement weather, however, the
campsite was somewhat flooded and
really not one of the best we saw over
the course of the trip. The wind whipped
across the campsite and picked up the
tents every so often while the rain that
made its way through the trees and
poured down on our camp. Needless to
say, the boys were not having the best
day but still they kept their spirits high
and never complained. We had a dinner
of Philly cheesesteaks; Christian Conte
exclaimed, "Wow! The best meal I have
ever had grace my gullet!" After a hard
day, the boys went to bed early again, in
hopes that the weather would improve.
August 10th

FINALLY! We woke up today to
AMAZING, and I am not exaggerating,
AMAZING weather. The sun was out,
the sky was blue, it was beautiful and
so are you! The mood had improved
exponentially. The counselors awoke to
the boys in the water catching frogs and
teaching them to fight (not very well).
The ringleader of this event was J.T.
McAllister. He took it upon himself to
okay any frog that was thrown into the

252

ring. We hung out for a long while and
had a meal of Nutri-Grain bars before
heading out towards the dam and the
actual St. Croix River.

The lake paddling took us about an
hour and a half before we reached the
dam. The boys immediately picked up
all the gear and the canoes and prepared
for our portage. The portage wasn't very
long, but it was the longest one these
boys had done so it took a good while
for it to get done. After the grueling
portage, we feasted on pep and cheese,
Sid Smith's favorite trip meal. Literally
he would not stop talking about it. It may
have been his favorite part of the trip, but
I really hope it wasn't. The council then
gave the boys their own Cokes. The extra
caffeine really added to the energy and
excitement for getting on the river.

After most of the canoes put-in to the
Croix, a truck pulled up and informed me
that they were going to increase the water
in the river by a lot and that the river was
going to be very high and very fast. We
didn't believe them, but we should have
taken their warning (foreshadowing).
We started down the river and trucked it
through lots of fast-moving water.

It took us about two or three hours
before we reached Little Falls, the
campsite we were supposed to stay at.
This didn't work out. All the campsites
at Little Falls had been taken and on top
of that, with the increase in river flow,
the Little Falls Rapid was virtually un-
runnable. Thus, after consulting with
some rangers, we decided to portage
the canoes and gear and then camp
several hundred feet from Little Falls
at the Lower Little Falls campsite. The
campsite was wonderful, minus the fact
that while we were there, we watched it
flood because of the increase in water. We
had a wonderful meal of pesto, chicken,
bacon, pasta and snuggled up into bed.
August 11 (dun dundunnnnnnn)
((dramatic music))

We woke. The weather was wonderful
and spirits were still high. We were
careless, free, and overconfident in our
grasp on how high and fast the water
was moving. Somehow words don't do
justice to events. In this case the boys of
North Bunkerhill will forever be proud

of their ability to take on this stretch of
the St. Croix River and become stronger
individually and as a cabin because of it.
We all showed strength and I am proud
of the way my boys handled the cards
they were dealt.
August 12th

After the day they had had, the boys
wanted to sleep in a little today. We
woke up late and had a long breakfast
of eggs and bacon. This day went a lot
slower than most of the days leading up
to it. The river had opened up and so
the water was moving much slower. We
meandered and played games and had a
really good day. Lots of sun and lots of
fun. It was our last full day of trip and we
wanted to have it be relaxing and fun.

We stopped on the river and had a
lunch of PBJH right after hitting the
Canoose Rips. It was a really nice day on
the water, but nothing of note happened.
We bonded a lot over the event of the
previous day and made it to our campsite
in around three or four hours.

Our last night was spent at Egg Point
campsite. This campsite was awesome
because of the very fast water moving
past it. The boys strapped on life jackets,
walked far up river and then floated down
river back to our campsite. It was really
fun (I joined in). We then had a dinner
of stir-fry and hung out by the campfire
until late into the evening, reminiscing
on the great trip we had had and how we
were going to miss the river.
August 13th

We woke up very early today, due to
the fact that The One would be picking
us up shortly. It was J.T. McAllister's
birthday and he wanted to celebrate it
back at camp. We packed up camp and
had a breakfast of granola bars. We got in
the water about eight thirty and leisurely
paddled to our take-out spot. We pulled
up at the exact same time as The One.
It was almost like magic. We packed up
the gear and headed back to camp after
stopping at Five Guys for a great meal of
burgers and fries. This was the longest
trip I have done as an HBC and I loved
every minute I spent with these boys.
This trip was really an amazing one and
I will remember it fondly forever. Thank
you boys! You will do great things.

253

North Cunningham Trip Report
Camden Hills
Evan Kantor, HBC

7/28

For the boys of North Cunningham, the
primer trip would consist of two glorious
days in Camden Hills. We departed camp
shortly after breakfast on about an hour-
long journey north to Camden. When we
reached our campsite, the weather was
rather poor, with clouds filled with rain
and a cold breeze. The boys, however,
did not let that slow them down.

Immediately we were teaching the boys
how to set up camp, with the help of our
veterans Graham Codd, Garret Dyckman,
Dan Schechter, Nathan Shapiro, and
Jack Wilmerding. They, along with the
counselors, taught the boys how to set up
tents, the tarp, and the kitchen area. In
no time camp was established and lunch
was being made. We enjoyed a big lunch
of cold cuts on double decker bread,
which we devoured under the tarp due
to the rain.

Afterwards, the rain subsided for a
while and we were able to reap all the
thrills Camden has to offer. Xander
Martin, Cole Rogers, Ethan Smith, Henry
Ledyard and Jack Wilmerding organized
ultimate Frisbee on the large field. We
swung on the swing sets and chilled
on the beach right on the ocean, where
Certain Djoko got to touch the Atlantic
for the first time. We played a game of
manhunt and talked over Jameson Roller
and Graham Codd's card games and
other fun activities. Essentially, the rain
did not prevent these boys from having
an awesome day.

When night struck we cooked a
delicious double down dinner, which
consists of two breaded chicken patties
surrounding bacon and Swiss cheese.
Needless to say the boys enjoyed those.
Afterwards we build a roaring fire,
around which we told stories, laughed,
shared pasts, and, of course, ate S'Mores.
Before too late the boys were exhausted,
and a good night's sleep in our tents was
in order.
7/29

We awoke the next day to a rainless
morning, so we were able to take our

time breaking down tents, the tarp, and
cooking breakfast. We had a delicious
breakfast of sausage, bacon, egg, and
cheese on English muffins before
departing from our site towards Bald
Rock Mountain.

We reached the mountain at around
11 and by 11:15 we were on our way.
The hike is about 2 miles long, mostly a
gradual incline with some steep sections.
The boys absolutely dominated the
hike. Henry Robinson, Dunk MacAvoy
Thompson and I got to know each other
really well at the back of the group, and
before long we were up the mountain
celebrating. We enjoyed a pepperoni and
cheese lunch at the top before descending
the mountain and returning back to
camp. After a quick stop at Round Top
we were back from our primer, equipped
with the necessary skills to be efficient
and successful campers, which we will
bring with us on our 6-day journey down
the St. Croix River.

North Cunningham
St. Croix River
Evan Kantor, HBC
8/1-8/6

Day 1 (8/1):

On August 1st, 2013, at 5 am, the boys
of North Cunningham awoke in their
cabins, bags packed, anxious to depart
on their 6-day journey down the St.
Croix River. We headed up to the trip
shack, loaded up our bus, ate a Pop Tart
breakfast, and by 6:15 am we were on the
bus heading north. The drive was about
6 hours long, so we stopped for some
munchkins at Dunkin Donuts on the
way. By around 1 pm we had arrived at
the end of Castle Road, at the put-in for
Spednic Lake. We would spend the first
2.5 days paddling this lake. Before we
hopped in our canoes, we decided canoe
partners, loaded up the canoes, and said
goodbye to our driver, The One.

After a quick clinic we were on the
lake, paddling northeast towards Birch
Island. The paddle was about 3 miles,
under a beautiful sky with no clouds,
and we arrived around 3 pm. Once
there, the boys set up camp: they pitched
tents, set up the tarp, and collected

254

firewood. While they were doing that,
the counselors made cold cut lunches,
with the help of Henry Robinson. After
lunch, the boys rested in their tents for
a while, then played chess, cards, and
basically hung out until we built a fire
around 6:30. The boys sat around the fire
while the counselors made double bacon
cheeseburgers, which filled us up, and
knocked us out for a long rest before we
began the first full day of our trip.
Day 2:

Unfortunately, on day 2, we woke up
at around 7 am to pouring rain. Rain can
really dampen a cabin's spirit, especially
when they have to break down camp in
the cold, wet conditions and attempt to
keep all the gear dry. Our cabin, however,
was in great spirits and kept a positive
attitude, so we paid little attention to the
rain. We threw on our rain gear, munched
down Pop Tarts, broke down camp, and
left Birch Island.

Today we would have to paddle about
8 miles, which on a wide open lake can
be very challenging. The headwinds
were strong, the rain was constant, and
the boys were cold and tired, but, boy,
were they positive and strong. Jameson
Roller and Jack Wilmerding led the group
northeast for about 5 hours until we
finally reached our beautiful campsite
at Todd's Island, which is technically in
Canada. We squatted there for the night,
however; and are forever grateful for our
northern neighbor's hospitality.

The boys were tired, cold, and wet,
but they still got right at it. We set
up camp and ate sun butter and jelly
sandwiches. We also enjoyed Milky
Ways for our struggles. After lunch the
rain subsided, and our tents were able
to dry out. Eventually, after hiding from
the cold in our tents for a couple hours,
the sun came out, and we basked in its
glory. We had a chess tournament, which
Nathan Shapiro won, before we cooked
a Philly cheesesteak dinner. Ethan Smith
and Garrett Dyckman led the clean-
up crew, then we hopped in our tents,
unfortunately without a fire due to the
wet, and got an early sleep for an early
wake-up, and a long day ahead.
Day 3:

The boys woke up at 6 am today for

what would be our longest day of the
trip. It was partly cloudy, which was a
major improvement from our previous
day, so the boys were amped up and
ready to tackle the day. We were on
the lake at 7 am for the last part of lake
paddling. We headed northeast for about
4 miles until we reached the dam in
Vanceboro that separated the lake from
the beginning of the St. Croix River.
The boys portaged around the dam,
which involved carrying canoes on their
shoulders, as well as all the group gear,
about 500 feet. They absolutely crushed
the portage, and Ethan Smith and Henry
Ledyard even took a canoe on their own,
which is almost unheard of at this age.
The boys were rewarded with Mountain
Dews and Doritos, which we got at a
nearby gas station; however, shortly after
it began to shower, so we hopped in the
canoes and began the main part of our
trip: the St. Croix.

There were several small rapids on
this stretch of the river, which allowed
for fast conditions and fun times. We
also saw a bunch of Canadians, as well as
Americans, enjoying the river alongside
us. The St. Croix, after all, is the border
between Canada and America. We
paddled about 10 miles until we reached
Little Falls, which is a Class III rapid. We
scouted it out, then ran it one canoe at
a time. The boys absolutely crushed it.
Not a single boat flipped, and everybody
took a flawless route down for the most
enjoyment.

Afterwards we paddled a short
distance to Baby's Grave campsite,
which is named such because in 1899
a child was found dead in the river and
was buried on the site. The boys saw the
tombstone and paid their respects to the
fallen baby. We swam for a while. Dunk
MacAvoy-Thompson LOVES to swim,
and he was in the water for hours. We
found firewood, built an amazing fire,
and after a double down dinner we were
able to eat S 'Mores and celebrate the
completion of our longest and hardest
day of the trip. From here on out the trip
would be a chill blast.
Day 4:

Day 4 would be a chill day, so we slept
late, and left Baby's Grave at around 10

am. It was our first truly beautiful day
since day 1, and we enjoyed a granola
breakfast under the sun. We paddled
down several rips today, which made the
paddle super fun and slightly technical.
Split Rock Rips is about a mile long
stretch of Class II rapids, which the boys
absolutely loved. Our paddle was only
about 8 miles on a fast river, so we arrived
at the Loon Bay campsite at around 1.
We ate a tuna lunch, and Gerlain Djoko
helped prepare lunch as well as prepare
most of camp.

After lunch we had a short rest hour
before hanging out on the beautiful
campsite, listening to Graham Codd's
interactive stories, collecting fire
wood, and just having a great time.
Unfortunately, the sun left and it began
to rain, so we huddled under the tarp
while Dan Schechter and Xander Martin
helped cook a delicious large dinner
of chicken and cheese quesadillas.
Unfortunately we had to cancel the fire
due to rain, so the boys went into their
tents after dinner and hung out with
their tent groups before bed.
Day 5:

Today would be our last full day of the
trip, so we savored every moment. We
woke up at 8 am to cloudy skies, and once
again, some rain. We broke down camp
very quickly because by now the boys
had become pros at taking tents down
and loading up canoes. We had granola
for breakfast again; this time under the
tarp instead of the sun, and were on the
last stretch of river by about 10:30.

Once we started paddling, it stopped
raining, and some blue skies even
appeared at some points. We instantly
went through Canoose Ledges, which
is another Class III rapid, and another
challenge that the boys absolutely
crushed. The rest of the paddle was very
relaxed and chilled because we wanted
to enjoy our last full day of the trip.
Unfortunately, the paddle only lasted
about 2.5 hours, despite our lethargic
technique, so we arrived at the Egg Point
campsite at around 1. The site was very
nice, and we enjoyed sun butter and jelly
sandwiches right on the point.

Afterwards we chilled, played chess
and cards, collected firewood, and for a

256

change-up, we had the boys prepare 3-
act plays of anything they wanted. The
plays were absolutely incredible. They
were hilarious, nostalgic of the trip,
and overall extremely well executed.
Cole Rogers and Garret Dyckman did a
skit where they pretended they were
meeting up five years after the trip to
discuss their memories from it, and they
impersonated everyone on the trip. It
was absolutely hilarious and incredible,
and it entertained the group for some
time. We ate Dank for dinner, which is
pasta with a TON of cheese, bacon, and
sausage, before we built our last fire and
ate S'Mores. The boys stayed up late
reminiscing about the trip and enjoying
each other's company before getting a
great night's sleep.
Day 6:

We woke up around 7:30 to get an early
start to meet our pick-up driver at 10. It
was a perfect sunny day, without a cloud
in sight. After we broke down camp,
we hopped in our canoes, said goodbye
to our campsite, and paddled the last
portion of the St. Croix River. It took us
about an hour and a half to reach our
pull-out point, where we were greeted
by The One. We loaded up the bus, said
goodbye to the river, and by 11 were on
the road, heading back to camp.

The ride was long but fun, and we
talked about our favorite parts of the trip.
We stopped at McDonalds for lunch on
the way home, and arrived back at camp
at around 5. We were welcomed back
with open arms. It was a bittersweet
feeling: our incredible trip was over, but
we had 11 more days to have a blast at
camp. We settled back in to camp with a
tremendous experience in our rear view,
and life lessons and skills that will last
a lifetime.

South Harris
Southover Primer
Nick Sanchez, HBC

July 26th

We woke up this morning excited
to head out onto Lake Damariscotta
to Kieve's new property of Southover.
Though the rain that met us as soon as we
walked out of the cabin, packed and ready
to go, we thought as a bad omen. After
breakfast at camp we brought all of our
gear to the waterfront, had a quick canoe
clinic, then set out before the weather got
worse. The paddle across was short and
the rain only a slight drizzle. The boys
didn't mind it one bit. They raced each
other and occasionally rammed the boats
into one another, all laughing. Henry and
Drew especially loving the rowdiness.

We reached the shore and unloaded
our wannigans, coolers, tents, and bags
before pulling our boats up so that they
wouldn't float away into the middle of
the lake. Nothing was forgotten of course.
Before the tents got any more drenched,
the boys went off to set up their new beds
for the night. They set up the tents next
to the large clear field and our home was
made. Soon after we had a hot lunch of
grilled cheese sandwiches, the rain let
up and a little bit of sun poked out from
behind the overcast. We took advantage
of the decent weather to play some
Manhunt. Nick G, a crafty player, hid in
the trees while Ian dashed away from us
in the woods.

After our huge hunt, we took a swim
in the warm water of the lake to wash off
the grime and sweat. As the sun began
to set, a huge meal of steak and cheese
rolls had us full and satisfied. The boys
slowly set out into the woods to look for
wood dry enough to build a fire. After
an excruciating time of gathering, and
an even more trying time of getting a fire
started, we all settled around, enjoying
the warmth and even greater the S'Mores.
Eric made delicious golden ones for us.
We all settled down in our tents with a
hope for sun tomorrow.
July 27th

We awoke late into the morning to
what we hoped for. The sun was out in
full force with a strong breeze to cool

257

us and keep the bugs away. We made a
ridiculous amount of bacon to go with
our sausage, egg and cheese sandwiches.
With the sun out, our shenanigans
continued with more games in the field,
a ton of swimming, and sunny naps on
the dock. Theo took out our kayak around
the dock with Johnny following right
behind. Will stayed out around the dock
the entire morning in the warm sun.

Having an early lunch of cold cut
sandwiches, we set out past Westcott
Point up along Damariscotta. Being a
Saturday, there were many boats out
along the lake so being out in the open
water was not an option. We made for the
tiny Blueberry Island where Nick Kelly
hopped out of the boat in search of them
and returned with a handful. After the
island, we detoured down to the dock of
Harriet House where we spent a sunny
hour performing tricks into the water.
More chilling on the dock was had before
we started our 30-minute paddle back
along the shore to arrive before dinner.
Our test of tripping was over. We were
ready for the real camping experience at
Baxter State Park in just a couple days.

South Harris

Baxter State Park Trip

Nick Sanchez, HBC

Day 1, July 30th

Today we left on a sunny warm day
for Baxter. We enjoyed our breakfast at
camp, made an announcement on our
departure, and loaded up our vans and
trailer for our long drive north. With the
music blasting, we set out on the road for
a 5-hour haul to the park. The weather
couldn't be better and our moods even
warmer as we jammed out on the road.
Matteo was our DJ as the van rolled along.
We had a lunch of cold cut sandwiches
in Bangor, about half way to Baxter, and
continued up 95 till we were far away
from the big cities.

We arrived in Millinocket and off in the
distance, towering above everything, was
Katahdin. The boys couldn't believe that
in a few days' time, we would be atop
the tallest mountain in Maine. The road
brought us into the park where it turned
to a narrow dirt "road". We were in the

woods. The excitement was off the charts
as we arrived to our campsite for the next
5 days. Very quickly, the boys flew out of
the van to explore their new home. We
had the Foster Field site all to ourselves
this first night and took the advantage of
the open areas to get out pent-up energy
and stretch our legs after the long travel
on the road. The tents were set up as we
cooked up some bacon burgers and soon
after, we hit the hay early, ready for our
first day of hiking tomorrow.
Day 2, July 31st Sentinel Mt

We started with a slow morning at
camp, the sun meeting us as we rose
from our tents. The boys got their gear
ready for the hike today while Nick Kelly
and Will filled up our water filters for all
of us to fill our water bottles and camel
bags. After a hearty meal of oatmeal, we
hopped in the vans for a short drive to
Kidney Pond, the start of the trailhead
for our first peak, Sentinel Mt. A 3-mile
hike to the top would be a good warm up
for our trip. The trail led us around the
pond where we had an amazing view of
Katahdin in the sunny cloudless sky. A
nice stroll in the woods to get our legs
ready for climbing the different terrain
we would face later on.

After a couple miles along the trail,
we started to gain some elevation. The
stone steps that had been laid on the trail
helped us along. Eric and Tim trudged
up the hill, taking their time up, unlike
Ian and Cameron who sprinted along
the path. The trail was a bit steep, but
soon we arrived at the Loop Trail along
the summit of Sentinel. At almost 2,000
feet above sea level, it was the smallest
mountain in our area of the park and
our smallest hike. The rocky ledges
around the mountain top path gave us an
unobscured view of the other mountains
growing out of the forest that we would
climb in the next few days. We saw Mt.
Coe, OJI, Doubletop, and, of course, the
majestic Katahdin above all else. Along
the trail we stopped to pick many wild
blueberries to snack on while enjoying
the view.

After our sightseeing and our delicious
lunch of hummus and pitas, we started
the descent back into the trees. In no
time at all, we were back at the trailhead

258

and the vans. Back at camp, Will, Drew,
and Henry went down to the stream to
swim while Matteo and Theo destroyed
everyone at card games. Plenty of naps
were had before our massive dinner of
steak and cheese, a favorite for the boys,
was served. Nick G and Johnny went in
search of firewood and that night we had
a glowing hot fire under the unobstructed
sky of stars.

Day 3, August 1st Mt. Coe & OJI

A huge day for the boys, the last test
before we would be ready for Katahdin.
We started a little later than we would
have liked. It took us a long time to
get all of our water filled up. We had a
breakfast of Pop Tarts in the van as we
headed to the Mt. Coe trailhead. Today
would consist of hiking to the summit of
Coe, take a small trail along a ridgeline to
OJI, and take this trail right down to our
camp at Foster Field. A 15-minute ride
brought us to the Marston trailhead that
would lead us to Coe. A slow gradual
start in the trees while the path led us
along a small stream we would cross
every now and then. As we turned off
onto the official Mt. Coe trail, the stream
grew into small falls of freezing crystal
clear water. Continuing to follow the
river, the trees spread apart into a small
valley of rock and sand. Turning around
we could see the valley of trees behind
us as we continued the trek up.

About 3 miles up, the trail split, one
path to the summit of Coe, the other to
OJI, which we would return to shortly.
The "trail" up to the summit was a huge
scramble up slabs of rock. The almost-
straight climb up was well worth the
effort. With steady legs and a steady
haul, we arrived. Atop of Coe, Katahdin
stared us straight in the face. From this
panoramic view we could really see the
size of the mile-high mountain. At a little
more than 3,000 feet, Katahdin was still
taller. While sitting atop the small peak,
we had lunch of sun butter sandwiches
with jelly and enjoyed the sunshine.
When we decided it was time to go, we
returned to an even slower descent of the
slabs. Henry, though, did not have a slow
bone in his legs and was the first to arrive
at the split in the trail.

From the split, we took the OJI

connecting path that was more a trail
that deer would use than people. Narrow
and overgrown, we took our time making
sure no one would be lost in the thick
foliage around us. In no time we arrived
atop OJI. From there it was only a 3-mile
hike down to our camp. The trail down
was steep, with a long open face that was
a rockslide. We took our sweet time to
all get down safely. After about 2 miles
we were back into the flat paths along
the forest. I turned around to hear Henry,
Nick K, and Will yelling and falling in
the mud that was randomly hidden along
the trail.

6 hours from the start, we arrived
back to Foster Field. Exhausted but
high spirited about what we just
accomplished, the boys all collected
wood for a well-deserved fire while
Addison cooked us amazing quesadillas.
Easily the best dinner on the trip. We
stretched out next to the fire and went to
bed early. Tomorrow it was our hope to
climb Katahdin.
Day 4, August 2nd

I awoke in my tent very early in the
morning to what I had feared the most.
A storm had rolled in during the night
and it pounded on the roofs of our tents,
waking us all up. It continued until the
time came for us to wake and pack for
the hike up Katahdin. As I left my tent,
our field had turned into a swamp and
water was rushing around down the
trails. Nick G, who had left his tent the
same time as I (5:30 in the morning), was
hustling around moving everyone's bags
and gear that was left out the night before
so they wouldn't become more drenched
than they already were. We both returned
to our tents, hoping that maybe soon the
rain would stop. At 7:30 it hadn't. We
decided that the terrain of the trail we
wanted to hike was too treacherous with
all this rain and so sadly we would have
to wait to hike Katahdin.

We had a warm breakfast of oatmeal
and card games and some Mafia were
our activities for the morning. Books
were read through quickly while the rain
got heavier, would let up some, and then
continue to pour down again. By the time
we cooked our lunch of grilled cheese
and tomato soup, the rain finally turned

259

260

into a slight drizzle. About an hour later,
the rain lifted and a bit of sun poked out
through the clouds. Tim and Ian went
along on walks to check the trails around
camp, Drew and Henry went to the river
and the Nicks, Theo and Matteo searched
for dry wood around the soggy marsh of
our campsite.

With the sun now coming out more and
more, we hopped in the van and went
to the water slides at the Ledges Slides.
The rocks made natural slides into pools
of water at the bottoms. The sun, now
shining down on us in a clear sky, lifted
our moods as we swam and slid around
for a couple hours of play and relaxation.
Ian and Cameron tried to surf down the
slides while Drew and Henry tried to
climb against the moving water. When
the time had come, we returned to the
van and headed back to camp. The field
had dried up and, with Johnny and Eric's
help, a huge pot of Dank was made.
Everyone had thirds and Will even went
on to 5ths. Considering we couldn't hike
Katahdin today, we all had fun and had a
relaxing day to prepare ourselves.
Day 5, August 3rd Mt. Katahdin

We woke early before the sun came up
to a clear sky. We had prepared ourselves
the night before so we put on our boots,
grabbed our packs and water and we
were off. About a 20-minute ride with
bagels and cream cheese we arrived at
the trail head of Abol. At 6 o'clock we
started up the mountain trail. The gradual
trail through the forest kept us cool as
the terrain started to rise as well as our
excitement. We all kept close together
and took our time. It wasn't going to be a
sprint up the mountain. About an hour of
hiking through the trees we came upon
the rock slide of Abol. From the bottom
clearing, we could see all the way to the
summit of our trail. With 2 miles of trail
still above us we continued on. We stayed
close and helped each other up the steep
path straight up into the sky. The sandy
slide soon turned into boulders so we
had to slow down to take our time and
make sure we didn't go off trail, looking
for the blue blazes which would lead us
all the way to the top.

Half way up the massive boulder field,
we entered straight into the clouds. The

mist and wind made us shiver so we
kept moving higher and higher to keep
our bodies warm. It was hard to see the
front of the group from the back the fog
was so thick. All of a sudden, the incline
stopped and evened out to a flat ground.
We made it to the table lands. The
plateau atop Katahdin that goes on like
a horizon line for a few miles. Though
that's on a clear sunny day. Today the
clouds stuck to the ragged peak of K-tads
and we couldn't see more than 30 feet in
front of us. After resting for a short time,
we kept moving along the flat path to
the summit to stay warm. It was still a
mile walk to the sign atop the mountain.
As we walked along, the wind blew the
cloud cover away and for brief moments
all of Baxter was reveled below us in a
massive landscape of lakes, trees, and
mountains in the distance. And there it
was - the sign of Katahdin summit. One
of Kieve's best experiences. 5,269 feet in
the air is where we all stood with joy.

After getting some sweet pictures atop
the mountain, we decided it was time
to go. The weather cleared up for us on
our descent back down the slide, taking
it even slower this time. As we were
heading down, almost at the tree line,
we got hit with a summer shower which
soaked us to the bone. But not even that
was enough to dull our glorious day. After
the rain it became a somewhat hilarious
descent with all of us slipping at one
point or another. After 8 hours, we all
arrived safely at the base of Katahdin. We
sorely got back in the vans and made for
camp. Back after our amazing day, naps
were taken, games of British Bulldog,
some medievalry, huge pizzas the kids
made themselves, and finally a last fire
that has us reflecting on our experience
in Baxter these last 5 days.

Tomorrow we would pack up the
tents and gear, load up in the vans and
head on home to Kieve. Before leaving
the north woods we had a ton of pizza
again in Millinocket. Then with the
same excitement we had of completing
Katahdin, we headed home for camp to
the place we all love.

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South Harrington
Primer

Timmy Macrae, HBC

July 31, 2013

We departed from the Kieve waterfront
pretty early in the day and started to make
our way over to Kieve 's new property,
Southover. After the short paddle, we
saw that South Glenayr was still there
and swimming around the dock. We said
hello and then turned the canoes down
the lake and headed towards Blueberry
Island. With Tommy and Peyton leading
the way, we got to the small island,
picked a couple of blueberries, and then
left to go find some more fun. We made it
to the Kieve rope swing and the boys had
a blast swinging and jumping into the
lake. Teddy and Stephen showed off by
doing 360s off the rope into the water.

After the rope swing we paddled
back to Southover and found that South
Glenayr had left and the site was empty.
We set up camp, and then made some
delicious grilled cheese and tomato
soup for lunch. After some downtime,
we played more games, went swimming,
and then went for another short paddle.
Fox dinner we had bacon cheeseburgers
and then had some S 'Mores for dessert.
At dusk the cabin had an awesome time
playing a game called Sniper, a hide and
go-seek like game where the campers had
to sneak up on the counselors without
being spotted. The boys all went to bed
early, waiting for the next day.
August 1, 2013

The boys were all up early and ready
to go. The counselors cooked up some
sausage, egg and cheeses and bacon, egg
and cheeses for breakfast. Yum! After
breakfast we packed up camp and got
ready for our paddle. We headed out on
to the lake, passed camp, and headed into
Deep Cove. After battling treacherous
headwinds, we eventually made it into
the cove with Peyton and Tommy leading
the way. On the journey, Mikey and
Timmy both fell out of their boat, almost
capsizing it. Once we finally made it to
Deep Cove, we made some PB&J's.

The group hung out in the cove
enjoying the nice weather and then
decided to head back to camp. On the

way back, Freddie helped the campers
set up a giant sail for the canoes. We all
rafted up, and held the tarp at the front
of the canoes. Jonah, Grant, and a couple
of others held the tarp at the front of the
raft allowing us to fly back to camp. Once
we saw camp, we de-rigged the sail and
paddled into the beach.

South Harrington Trip Notes
Baxter State Park
Timmy Macrae, HBC

8/5/13 Road Trip

After breakfast at Kieve, the boys all
hopped in a van and we headed to Baxter
State Park. Along the way we stopped in
a parking lot in Millinocket to eat lunch
and stretch our legs. After filling up the
vans with gas, we pushed onward to
Baxter. Driving into Baxter we all took
notice of Katahdin magnificently jutting
up over the rest of the park. Once we had
our reservations cleared with the rangers,
we drove to Bear Brook Campsite and set
up camp. For dinner we had delicious
steak wraps with avocado slices. Once
the pots and pans were clean, the crew
began to get ready for the first challenge
of the trip, Katahdin. Before going to
bed, we filtered water from the brook so
that everyone would be prepared for the
sunrise hike the next day.
8/6/13 Katahdin Sunrise

The alarm went off at 1 a.m. and the
van was quickly packed with campers.
After eating some Pop Tarts on the road,
we switched on our headlamps and
began our journey up the Chimney Pond
Trail. Freddie led the way along with
Teddy, George, Grant and Stephen. Very
slowly and cautiously the group made
it to Chimney Pond. We took a quick
snack break and then continued on the
Cathedral Trail to try to catch the sunrise
on top of the mountain. About halfway
up Cathedral the sky began to lighten
and the sun began to slowly rise. Even
though we weren't at the top, we still had
an outstanding view of the sun rising. It
was also nice to have light to climb the
second half of Cathedral because it was
really steep. Eventually the entfre cabin
made it to the top of Cathedral and on to
the ridge of Katahdin.

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At the top Mikey led the way to the
summit. Unfortunately the sun brought
the wind, and huge gusts of wind made
Knife's Edge impassable. Not wanting
to spend too much time in the cold, we
quickly got our pictures with the sign and
headed back down the ridge the way we
came. Instead of going down Cathedral
we opted to take the Saddle Trail down
the mountain. We descended much faster
than the ascent and in no time we were
once again at Chimney Pond. However,
this time we could actually see the pond
and the colossal mountain that loomed
above it. It was amazing to stand there
and see what we had just climbed.

At Chimney Pond, we made turkey
and ham sandwiches for lunch and took
a quick nap. After everyone stopped
laughing from Michael Dayya's comedy
routine, we continued onward back
down the Chimney Pond Trail. Once we
finally made it back to camp, everyone
crashed for a nap. We awoke from our
naps around 5 and started to make bacon
cheeseburgers for dinner. After feasting
on the burgers, we hung out for a bit
around camp and then went to bed early,
exhausted from the hike.
8/7/13 OJI and Waterslides

This morning we had granola, real
milk, and fresh fruit for breakfast. After
the cleanup, we hopped in the van and
headed towards one of Baxter's most
famous peaks, Mount OJI. The hike starts
in a boggy area with lots of log bridges.
The mountain then juts upwards and an
open rock face acts as the trail. The boys
enjoyed boulder dashing up the side of
the mountain and climbing over the big
rocks to reach the summit. At the summit
we had a gorgeous view of Baxter State
Park and in particular, Katahdin. We had
pep and cheese for lunch on the summit
and then began our descent.

A beautiful sunny day allowed us
to continue our adventure with The
Ledges, the famous Baxter waterslides.
At the slides the entire cabin slid down
the rocks, having a blast gliding down
the flat rocks with crystal clear alpine
water flowing over them. Peter Yanes
hilariously attempted to swim up the
strong current, but quickly realized that
his efforts would be to no avail as he was

continuously swept down the stream.
Mike Hornung gleefully said that the
waterslides were one of his favorite parts
of the trip and that he liked the second
one the best. One of the many highlights
at the waterslide was when the entire
cabin linked up into a train and went
down the second water slide with George
and Mike H. in the front and Mikey and
Marco forming the caboose. To dry off,
we sunbathed on the rocks adjacent to
the slides. We got back in the van around
5:30 and headed back towards Bear
Brook for dinner. After scrounging down
some pesto pasta, the boys sat around the
campfire telling stories until it was time
for bed.

8/8/13 Little and Big Niagara

Today we celebrated Mikey's birthday.
For breakfast we had pancake cakes;
pancakes made with half cake batter
and half pancake mix with M&Ms and
crushed Oreos on top. Even though the
weather was not ideal, the boys still
piled in the van and we headed to the
west side of Baxter to check out the Little
Niagara and Big Niagara waterfalls. We
hiked a quick mile and found ourselves
at Little Niagara.

After checking out Little Niagara,
we headed back to the path and went
to Big Niagara a couple hundred yards
away. The boys all had fun swimming
in and around this breathtaking cascade
waterfall. Timmy led the way to a rock
next to the waterfall that the campers
could jump off. Tommy and Peyton
showed off some great swim moves,
powering through the current to the
other side of the river. Teddy, George, and
Jonah loved jumping from the rock into
the Whitewater created by the waterfall.
Peter Yanes led the charge, bravely
swimming underneath the waterfall in
the pocket of air between the rock and the
falling water. Brady kicked out one of his
legs during the crossing, got pushed into
the water and than sprang up, laughing
as he inhaled for air.

Once we were done swimming, we
made grilled cheese and tomato soup
on top of the waterfall. The hot soup
and warm grilled cheese reheated the
shivering campers and soon enough we
were all ready to head back to the van.

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Mikey's birthday celebration continued
back at the campsite when we made
double downs with bacon and ranch
for dinner. After dinner, Freddie helped
the campers make a roaring fire that was
started with wet wood. We pulled out the
S'Mores and ghost stories were told until
it was time for bed.
8/9/13 Owl

We started off the day with a hearty
breakfast of sausage, egg and cheese.
After breakfast we sat around and waited
for the weather to break, joking around
in the lean-to. Not sure if the rain would
ever stop, we decided to go for it anyways
and head to The Owl. Ten minutes before
we got to the trailhead, the rain let up
and some rays of sun could be seen
poking out from behind the clouds. We
began our ascent on the Hunt Trail, the
same trail that Maine Trails hikes all the
way up Katahdin, and then split off onto
the Owl Trail that led us to the top of The
Owl.

Once we got towards the top of the
mountain, we were in the clouds. While
we were standing on the top, the clouds
broke and we had a gorgeous view of
Katahdin. On the way back down we
decided to go up the Hunt Trail a little
farther to see Katahdin Stream Falls. We
chilled at the falls, ate a snack, and then
headed back to the van. We had a great
meal of Dank for dinner and then packed
up and got ready to leave the next day.
8/10/13 South Turner and Kieve

We woke up at 5:30 am and began
to pack up camp. After loading up the
trailer we got in the van and headed to
South Turner Mountain. We summited
quickly and had a snack on top of the
mountain. We had a fantastic view of the
east side of Katahdin and the Cathedral
Trail that we had climbed days before.
After a few cabin pictures we headed
down the mountain with our palates
salivating for 5 Guys on the way home.
On the way back to Kieve we feasted at
5 Guys and had fun listening to music
and joking around in the van. We arrived
back to Kieve around 5, unpacked and
cleaned the van, and then feasted on
steaks for dinner.

North Harris TVip Report
TXimbledown Mountain
John Goodman, HBC

Day One: Mount Blue

After an ordinary Kieve breakfast, the
cabin's morning duties were announced
as always: North Harris's - pack and go.
We all piled into our fifteen-passenger
van and minivan, and headed north
toward Mt. Blue State Park, where we
planned to summit three mountains
in three days. We soon arrived at the
park, and made our way toward our first
mountain, Mt. Blue. But first, a quick
stop at the side of a dirt road for some
tuna fish sandwiches.

After lunch, the campers and I drove
the rest of the way to the mountain in
the van, with our intrepid counselors
Pietro and Harry following behind in
the minivan. On reaching the base of
the climb, however, we discovered that
something was wrong when the minivan
failed to arrive. We walked back to
investigate, and found that it had become
stuck in a muddy segment of the narrow
road. The entire cabin pushed, but to no
avail, and we quickly realized we would
have to be more creative than that. We
put some sticks and rubber mats under
the tires; again, with no success. Finally,
Pietro had the idea of using the fifteen-
passenger van as a tow truck, and we
retrieved the trailer chains, along with
some of Harry's climbing rope, and with
this contrivance were able to firmly attach
the two vehicles. The cabin cheered as
the minivan slowly lurched up from
its sedimentary prison and rejoined us
on the road, and by then it was time to
finish the job we had come for.

Mt. Blue was a fun hike, with rough
but wide trails and an incredible lookout
point near the top. At the peak itself was
an old fire tower, which we all climbed
for a cabin photo before descending.
After returning to the vans, we drove
to a picnic area perched over a vista of
the entire park to watch the sunset, then
returned to our campsite. Pietro prepared
a delicious dinner of cheeseburgers, and
after gathering around the campfire for a
game or two of Mafia, this time featuring
Batman, we retired to our tents.

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Day Two: Blueberry Mountain

We awoke on the second day and
treated ourselves to a breakfast of granola
with milk, then headed toward our next
intended goal: the summit of Blueberry
Mountain. After a brief incident in
which this time the fifteen-passenger
van became stuck, and in this case had
to be towed out by the generosity of a
passing pickup truck owner, we parked
at the Bible Camp which lies at the base
of the mountain, then made our way up.
Ten or fifteen minutes in, I was hiking
with Parker and Stuart when we were
surprised to see a small black dog run up
past us. She would join the group, walk
for a bit, run ahead, then wait for the
group to catch up, as though leading us
up the mountain. We would later learn
that the dog's name was Sheilee, and
she was indeed a guide dog, trained to
lead groups from the camp below to the
summit. With our bold guide in front,
we pressed on, finding many blueberries
once we got near the top, and playing a
few fun rounds of Camouflage.

Soon we reached the summit, which,
while not providing quite as good a view
as Mt. Blue, was abundant in the berries
for which the mountain is named. Soon
it was time to descend, and we made our
way back down to the Bible Camp with
Sheilee. Once there they let us borrow
their bathrooms to fill our bottles and
empty our bladders, and Ludo and Leo
discovered a bush sprouting blueberries
the size of glass marbles, a few of which
we surreptitiously enjoyed. We tried to
slide on a large toboggan slide which it
turned out did not work without snow,
then returned to the campsite for a lunch
of cold cuts.

Before dinner, the campers were tasked
with producing a three-act musical, which
we viewed just as Pietro put the finishing
touches on some fajitas. The fare was a
harrowing survival tale of North Harris's
trip to Tumbledown Mountain in which
the vans accidentally drove off a cliff,
killing the counselors and leaving the
campers to fend for themselves. Half died
from eating the poisonous mushrooms
Pietro had warned us about earlier, one
was murdered and cannibalized, and the
rest were finally rescued by Camp Kieve

director Tommy Hartenstein and his
dog Mia in a helicopter. Following the
play, we all enjoyed our dinners and had
another game of Mafia, this time featuring
Sherlock Holmes, then hung out around
the campfire and enjoyed some ambient
strumming from Harry's guitar until after
dark before going to get some rest in
preparation for Tumbledown.
Day Three: Tumbledown Mountain

We woke up early on day three and broke
down our campsite while the counselors
prepared some bacon, sausage, egg and
cheese breakfast sammiches for the
group. Once everything was packed into
the vans, we departed for Tumbledown
Mountain. We reached the base and began
the walk up - another fun hike, with the
brightest and clearest skies we'd had so
far. On the top of Tumbledown is a pond,
and we reached it, making a note to swim
on the way down. We left our backpacks
by the pond and scurried up some rocks
to the summit itself, where we enjoyed
the view with some Rice Krispie Treats.
We descended a bit, and everybody
decided to have a swim, though Thomas
and Ludo needed a bit of coercion from
the rest of the cabin first.

After an extremely refreshing swim in
the now somewhat crowded pond - the
other hikers ranging from nine-person
families to heavily-tattooed hipsters - we
made our way down the mountain back
to the waiting vans. We all piled in for
one last time and, after a quick snack of
Fig Newtons, we were on our way. We
took a detour to Subway for some lunch,
and were back among the men of Camp
Kieve in time for dinner, feeling primed
and ready for the Moose River.

North Harris
Moose River
John Goodman, HBC

Day One: The Portage

We awoke in our cabin around six in
the morning on the first day of our trip.
Many of us were reluctant to leave our
warm beds, knowing that we wouldn't
be seeing them again for a week. Still,
we got up, and got our personal gear
together, then headed for the Buck. Nat
Shenton's Allagash cabin was leaving

266

the same morning, so we said goodbye
to them, as well as to Reid, Robbie, and
T.J., our trusty tripping directors, before
shoving off in one of Kieve's orange
school busses driven by Kieve legend
Bob Linker. Once in the bus, one of Bob's
first conversation items was "you all can
sleep if you want," which ushered in a
mass napping session for counselors
and campers alike that would last until
around nine o'clock. We got to the river
around ten thirty, and quickly set about
putting our boats in the water and our
gear in our boats.

Once we were all put-in, we began
the paddle across Attean Pond, which,
with the winds against us, took a bit
of effort. A quick cold cut lunch stop
later, we were at the other side of the
pond. The problem, of course, is that
between Attean Pond and Holeb Pond,
our destination, lies a 1.2 mile stretch of
dry land. So it was that early on the first
day, in the shadow of Attean Mountain,
we began the Moose River trip's single
most difficult undertaking. In short, we
were to perform for two miles the same
job that had just been performed by Bob
Linker, a steel canoe trailer, and a two-ton
bus. After preparing ourselves mentally
and physically for the task, we hoisted
the boats up onto our backs and began to
walk. Because walking, really, is all there
is to portaging. Among labours, however,
it really is unique, I think, in how pure
a test of willpower it is. .When you're
out in the middle of the woods, the only
sounds being the birds, the wind, and the
buzz of the gnats, it's not the weight that
gets to you - though it may feel as though
your spine is slowly compressing into
the earth as you walk - it's the pain, and
the despair. And unlike weight, pain and
despair can be ignored, or, even better,
overcome. On day one the Attean Carry
taught us that when a job needs doing,
it doesn't matter how you feel, or how
much you've already carried, or whether
you're doing your best. What matters is
that eight canoes and seven days' worth
of food and gear make it from one shore
to another. And they did.

When everything we'd brought with
us made it through the woods and over
the same railroad which we would meet

again several times later in the trip, we
set up camp, just as the sun was setting
over Holeb Pond. We built a fire, had
some well-earned food - a hearty meal
of Philly cheesesteaks prepared by
our resident master Italian chef Pietro
Barbieri, and retreated into our tents.
Day Two: The Lake

Day two began like any day on the river,
though we decided that, having worked
so hard the day before, a bit of a sleep-
in couldn't hurt, and we took our time
breaking down the campsite and heading
out onto the water. What followed was
a steady, windy lake paddle, which we
had already somewhat gotten the hang
of by now, before we finally reached the
head of the Moose River.

The day was probably the least
eventful of the trip, but we passed the
time paddling with swapping songs
and stories, and everyone was excited
to finally reach the Moose River. At the
riverhead we enjoyed some pep and
cheese, and from there it was only an
hour or so to our campsite, where we set
up a comfortable camp and relaxed a bit
with some dinner skits speculating about
how the counselors spend their time off.
(According to the winner: Pietro works
out, Harry plays his guitar in peace, and
I'm secretly a covert operative for Kieve-
related espionage missions.) Dinner
was delicious as always, consisting of
cheeseburgers with sauteed onions and
peppers, followed by S'Mores, and after
some time around die campfire, it was
time for bed.
Day Three: The Rapids

A bit into day three's river journey we
came upon a rapid that I remembered
from when I had done the Moose River
myself in 2005. When my cabin and I
had come there under the leadership
of Kieve legend Bubba, he had decreed
the rapids to be paddle-able, and, the
water being quite high, I decided to do
the same. Pietro and I went first in my
canoe to ensure that it could be done,
and indeed it could. We had to get out
of the canoe a few times to move the
boat by hand, and Pietro deployed some
of his Herculean strength to hurl a few
boulders out of the way and create a
small eddy at the base that a canoe could

267

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easily plop into. One by one, we brought
the boats down without incident, then
prepared some tuna fish sandwiches for
lunch while the campers went back and
used one particular zone of the rapids as
a natural waterslide.

Shortly after, we came upon another
rapid, and again decided to shoot it. The
first boat, containing Pietro and Ludo,
flipped after going down, though swift
intervention allowed us to retrieve all of
our gear. After this we decided that this
particular rapid should be shot without
gear, and we brought our wannigans to
the portage trail. Ethan and I went next,
flipping briefly, then making the rest of
the way down alright, then Forrest and
Brinton went down, making it to the end
without flipping.

Next, Wyeth and Parker's boat entered
the rapids. I was standing above by the
portage, and did not see it happen, but
when I came to see how it was going,
the boys' boat was jammed sideways
against a rock and in the process of
sinking. Harry and I leapt into the water
to help save the boat, and he, Wyeth,
Parker, and I pulled with all our might
to try to free the canoe, but to no avail.
We decided that some more of that
Herculean strength was what was called
for, and sent Parker up to retrieve Italian
professional rugby player Pietro Barbieri.
Pietro came down to help, but even with
all of us pulling the canoe still would not
come free. Wyeth, always a man of many
clever contrivances, then had an idea
which far beat the application of brute
strength: bail the boat mid-rapid. He ran
up to get some Nalgenes, and Harry and
I used paddles to begin splashing water
from the submerging boat. Once Wyeth
returned with the Nalgenes, we all
began fiercely bailing, and soon enough
pressure was alleviated that the canoe
was released from between its rock and
its hard place and the water, rather than
shoving down into the rocky riverbed,
swept it out and down the rapids, guided
by Parker and Wyeth.

Earlier that day, for whatever reason,
the story of Scylla and Charybdis had
come up, and I now realized that, like the
ancient King of Ithaca who faced those
beasts, we would have to make a choice

between two unpleasant options. I
decided that it was not too late to change
our decision, and that the remaining
canoes should thus be portaged, so as to
avoid the risk of another sunken ship. We
set about moving them around the rapids
on the portage trail. Soon - half by land
and half by river - the boats were all at
the bottom of the rapids, and we shoved
out to finish the day's adventure.

Soon we came to our intended campsite,
at the top of another, much tamer, rapid.
We decided that the rapid was best shot
tomorrow, and pulled the canoes up.
Ludo and Pietro, however, were unable
to contain their excitement, and shot the
rapid immediately. What happened next,
Pietro will fervently claim, was not a flip
— rather, Pietro and Ludo simply sank.
Again, no gear was lost, and we pulled
our European Mends back onto shore
and changed them into some dry clothes.
We all gathered around the campfire and
tucked in to a dinner of chicken fajitas
before crawling back into bed having
been taught another valuable lesson,
this time by the river itself: always know
your options.
Day Four: The Beach

We awoke to a rainy morning, and we
decided to let the patter of water against
the tent fly subside a bit before emerging
and preparing to go. Other than Pietro
and Ludo's sinking the night before, the
cabin made it down the rapid without
any incident, and soon we were on our
way. Half an hour or so later we came
upon another rapid. This one would
have seemed easy enough, if not for one
ominous touch - at the base of it was a
sandbar decorated with the front half of
an old wooden canoe, its stern seeming
to have been violently torn from it by
some mighty current in years before. The
entire cabin made it down alright, leaving
only Ethan and myself at the top.

We entered the rapid without incident,
but, at the bottom something went slightly
wrong (Max and Ethan would insist that
the problem was me getting cocky) and
our boat was tossed over onto its side,
tossing gear each way and resulting in
one of Ethan's flip-flops being lost to Davy
Jones, never to be seen again. Thankfully
nothing more important suffered the

269

same fate, and once the boat was bailed
and reloaded on the sandbar, we were on
our way again. Soon we came to the end
of this portion of the Moose River, and
prepared for more lake paddling. Just as
our luck had dictated through the lake
paddling portions of our trip to date, the
breath of Aeolus was against us, but we
paddled through the headwinds to come
into a beach a bit before sunset.

This was probably the best campsite
we had during the trip, and we made the
most of it by all going into the woods and
retrieving some hefty logs. We assembled
them into a log-cabin formation and,
once it was dark, set a spark to it to create
a blazing bonfire. An extremely dank pot
of Dank was prepared by Pietro for the
cabin, which we all thoroughly enjoyed.
We played some Mafia, and stayed up
gazing upward into the glorious abyss
of the night sky. The atmosphere was
brisk and clear, and we had a clear view
out into the Milky Way. Once Brandon
had gotten over his city-dweller's shock
at the clarity of the night sky, we spent
some time chatting around the fire and
stargazing before returning to bed, with
the exception of Parker, Max, Brinton,
and Ethan, who chose to spend the night
on the beach next to their tent.
Day Five: Hospitality at the
Strasburgers'

The early morning saw a light drizzle
driving Max, Brinton, Ethan and Parker
back into their tent for a few hours before
the group woke up to once again sunny
skies. The weather would prove to be
fickle today, however, and a few minutes
after we pushed off back onto the lake,
a storm raged for about six minutes
before the sky became clear once again.
We were soon on to the next section of
the Moose River, and a few minutes in
we ducked under the bridge that passes
through the town of Jackman. Pietro and
I went into town to buy some cereal to
replace the breakfast of granola that had
been drenched on day three, as well as
some blueberry sodas for the cabin.

Soon we were on our way again, and
we had a long, easy river paddle through
most of the afternoon. Stuart and I
had an intriguing conversation about
technology companies, and Patrick,

now serving as the bowman for Forrest,
developed the characters of Dan and
Marge, a bickering old married couple
(both voiced by Patrick himself) who had
loud and different opinions on the state
of the river.

Soon we came to the lake, across
from which lay the house which Frank
Strasburger built forty years ago, and
which since had hosted Kieve groups on
the Moose River trip twice a summer on
the tent platforms in its yard. Harry and
Will Seaman arrived first, and, excited
to start sailing, put up the tarp of Harry's
hammock and took off toward the house.
The winds were in our favor today, and
the rest of the group decided to sail as
well, setting up our kitchen tarp with two
paddles into a large sail that spanned five
boats. The sail worked quite well, and
with Wyeth taking a shift as captain, we
were soon in sight of the far shore. The
canoes began to come apart, however,
and when Max was caught with one foot
in one boat and one in another, he ended
up having an unexpected swim. This
prompted us to split back up, and soon
we had paddled the rest of the way. Frank
greeted us at the dock and showed us the
tent platforms, and we set up camp.

The railroad which we had crossed
on the Attean Portage had wriggled
around to this side of the woods, and
we spent the afternoon undergoing the
Railwalker Challenge. The camper who
walked the farthest balanced on a single
rail would win the title of Railwalker,
and everybody tried their hand. Soon,
Ethan, Ludo, and Will Miller took
the lead, with Ludo having a fast,
slapdash style that involved impressive
recoveries, and Ethan and Will taking
the strategy of having a completely static
upper body with an immobile center of
gravity. Eventually Ludo made a tilt from
which he could not recover, and shortly
afterward Ethan came to a pile of rocks
on the rail which his static style could
not adapt to. Will walked on for some
time, and returned with the honorary
epithet of the Railwalker.

Frank came through to share some ice
cream sandwiches with us, explaining
how this was how he had first been
introduced to Kieve. He had shared

270

some ice cream with a group that had
been kicked out of a public camp site,
and invited them to stay in his yard.
Decades later, all of his children have
gone through Kieve, and he and his w^ife
still invite the camp to use their land on
the Moose trip.

We ate a dinner of chili con carne, then
had some S 'Mores around the campfire
and retired again to our tents - for one of
the last times.
Day Six: The Pickup

We awoke at the Strasburgers' ready for
an eleven thirty pickup by Bob Linker.
I prepared a breakfast of Goodman Lee
Buchanan AUagash Funtime Goodman's
Specialty Scrambled Pancakes, the
enjoyment of which was briefly
interrupted by the arrival of Bob Linker
at ten o'clock, much to our surprise.
We quickly finished our breakfasts and
tidied up the campsite so as to leave it
as we had found it, then loaded all of
our gear into the boats. The gear and
canoes had to be moved from the dock
to the waiting trailer, and so we prepared
ourselves for one final portage. Brinton,
Wyeth, Ethan, and Forrest all tried their
hands at soloing boats, but the star of
the morning was Will Railwalker Miller,
who singlehandedly brought half of our
eight boats up to the trailer.

Soon we were on our way, and within
forty minutes we pulled into Adventure
Bound Rafting Company. There was a
large field for us to set up our tents in,
and, once we bid farewell to Bob, we
set about enjoying the rafting company's
lodge. Most of us went for a swim in the
pool, with Leo besting the rest of us in a
race, and everyone took the opportunity
to enjoy the hot tub. A light drizzle that
lasted for twenty minutes or so drove us
inside, where we found hot chocolate
and board games. Two very intense
games of Monopoly followed, filled with
scheming, ploys, and even a miniature
Ponzi scheme.

We had more dinner skits, this time for
a dinner of soup and pasta, and then we
headed inside to use Adventure Bound's
projector to watch the Fellowship of
the Ring. Watching the movie just after
finishing the canoe trip highlighted
some very close similarities between the

Journey to Mordor and a Kieve trip, and
we all enjoyed ourselves highly before
finishing up and heading to bed.
Day Six: Raiting on the Kennebec

We awoke at five forty-five to meet in
the lodge at six. There, we were given a
thorough talk about rafting procedures
and safety by one of the guides before
we rented some wetsuits. Within an
hour, we were on the bus headed for
the Kennebec. When we got there, we
divided into two raft groups and tossed
our big yellow rubber floats out onto
the river. We went through some great
rapids, with Pietro falling out, lots of
people going swimming, and a visit to a
very cool waterfall. Then it was time for
lunch. The lunch was provided by the
rafting company, and we were given a
choice of steak, veggie burgers, chicken,
or fish, with the correct choice being
steak.

After a bit more fast water and some
kayaking, our day on the Kennebec was
done, and we met Bob Linker back at the
lodge. The rafting company prepared
an extremely amusing video, which we
stayed to watch, and soon we were on
our way. Once again, we returned to be
among Kieve in time for dinner.

Bank I

Sugarloa£^igelow
Hib Schenck, HBC

Day 1, July 29:

It was Monday and we had to leave
for our primer. After a good breakfast at
camp, we all grabbed our gear and piled
into the van. After a little while we arrived
at Wal-Mart for a great lunch of turkey,
roast beef, ham and cheese sandwiches
with red hot and Worcestershire sauces.
Afterward we got back in the vehicles
and on the road headed to our campsite
on the beautiful shores of Flagstaff Lake.

We arrived at the campsite and set up
our camp, pitching tents and putting
up the tarp before getting a nice snack.
We got set up just in time for the large
thunderstorm that was closing in when
we pulled up. We hid in our tents for
the remainder of the storm and rode it
out snuggled up on our sleeping bags.
Unfortunately one tent did get flooded,

271

but we figured out how to get the tent
emptied out and dry. After dinner
we had an amazing dinner of Philly
cheesesteaks. After cleaning up dinner,
we sat around the fire to warm up and
dry off for a while, and soon we were all
tired and hit the hay for a good night's
sleep for our big hike tomorrow.

-Randy Obstler

Day 2, July 30:

After a full day of driving yesterday, we
got to hike today, all except for Wyatt and
Hib who stayed back because Wyatt hurt
his foot the night before. For breakfast
we had Pop Tarts, a true breakfast of
champions. After we finished breakfast,
we set out for the peak of Bigelow
Mountain. The trail was beautiful and
very nice.

After hiking for some time, we stopped
for snacks. We got Ritz crackers with
cheese. From there, the hike got steeper
and harder. Most of us began to "feel
the burn." We got a good viewpoint and
saw the summit that we were shooting
for, and it was still a ways away, so we
kept on pushing until we finally made it.
Our reward was rocket fuel, a PB&J with
Snickers in the middle. The sandwiches
pepped us up and we headed down the
hill. Myself and Buck and some others
almost broke into a run toward the end
because we were excited to finish up.
The total distance of the hike was twelve
miles.

We were all tired and sore when we
finished up, but it was worth it. Corn
beef hash and bacon was for dinner, and
it was filling and delicious. We turned
in soon after because of how tired we all
were from our long day. -Ryan Silverman
Day 3, July 31,

We awoke to a beautiful, sunny
morning on Flagstaff Lake. Immediately,
before breakfast, the campers packed up
their bags and broke down their tents
under the instruction of the counselors.
While everyone packed up the van,
Charlie and I cooked some heart-stopping
breakfast of scrambled eggs with bacon,
cheese, and veggies, and corn beef hash.
After our late breakfast, everybody
got into the van and we left for Burnt
Mountain, next to Sugarloaf Mountain.
After a quick bathroom break, we all set

out for the top. This time, everyone did
a much better job of sticking together
on the trail. Despite many rocks, roots,
and trees in the way, everyone flew up
the trail, eager to get past treeline and
get a glimpse of the summit and the
surrounding countryside. Unfortunately,
due to time restrictions, we couldn't get
all the way to the top, but it was a good
hike nonetheless. We snacked on Milky
Way bars and got on the road. A quick
stop at Wendy's was the only break as we
hightailed back to camp.

-Buck Auchincloss

Bank I

Penobscot

Hib Schenck, HBC

Day 1, August 6th

Reid drove us up to Baxter State Park
where we met up with Trey, Ben, Chris,
and the rest of Bank II in order to drop
off their canoes. We unloaded the canoes
with Bank II who then proceeded onto
the next leg of their trip. We continued
on to our campsite in Baxter. Our
campsite was the closest one to the river
and had two picnic tables underneath
a small roof. Directly behind the tables
was a fire pit. Everyone set up tents at the
campsite while the counselors cooked up
a delicious lunch of grilled cheese with
tomato soup.

When all had their fill, Buck took
the group bridge jumping at the river,
which was very fun. After the swim, the
group relaxed until dinner time, when
the counselors made pasta alfredo with
bacon. While eating, a cabin from Wavus
walked by and Ryan invited them over to
play a large game of Duck Duck Goose.
The two cabins quickly warmed up to
each other over. Soon, however, everyone
gathered around the campfire and talked
until everyone grew tired and retired to
his or her tents, excited for the hike the
next day. -William "Bacon" Yanes

Day 2, August 7th

We woke up and decided to hike North
Traveler. We ate oatmeal combined with
Buck's chia seeds, one of the healthiest
things you can eat. We then got into the
van and drove to the trailhead to begin
our hike. Though the trail was only

272

2 miles long total, it felt much longer
because of how steep it sloped up. There
were many false peaks on our way up,
but after regrouping, we summitted the
real peak all together. At the top we ate
lunch, which consisted of PB & J and
Rice Krispy Treats. After eating, we
took tons of pictures and soaked up the
view from the mountaintop. The sights
were incredible. You could see a huge
spectrum of peaks, including Katahdin
to the South. Eventually, we packed up
our things and began our descent of the
mountain, engaging in a wide variety of
conversations as we went.

When we got back to the campsite we
were faced with decision of what to make
for dinner: Philly cheese steaks or double
downs. It did not take long to decide that
a baseball game was the best way to settle
this dilemma. Since our count was the
13 original colonies, 1 state for each of
the 13 campers, we divided the teams
into North vs. South. Each team was
playing for one of the two possible meals
that night. The catch was that none of
us knew what meal we were playing
for; the counselors had decided before
the game began. In the end, the South
finally pulled out a victory with a walk
off double. Moments later, to the entire
cabin's delights, we found out the South
was representing double downs. This is
a favorite trip meal of Hib's, consisting of
2 chicken patties sandwiching together
bacon, cheese, and ranch dressing. It's
now safe to say it is a cabin favorite. We
all sat around the fire that night, eating
our patties, telling stories and laughing.
After a long day, everyone gladly retired
to their tents and crashed for the night.

-Ryan "Goose" Silverman
Day 3, August 8th

We woke up to the pounding of rain
on our tents. After everyone got up, we
ate breakfast sandwiches and we decided
that we would have a chill day because
it was raining so hard and didn't look
like it would stop any time soon. We
hung around the campsite waiting for it
to clear until it eventually did, at around
two o'clock. Then we had a lunch of
rocket fuel, which is peanut butter and
jelly sandwiches with a Snickers bar in
the middle. After lunch we decided to

play another game of baseball, with the
counselors playing this time. We had the
idea to change the strike zone to a folding
chair behind home plate to more easily
tell which pitches were balls and which
were strikes. Eventually Hib hurt himself
on a dirt road that ran through our
field and decided that the game should
stop because he didn't want one of the
campers to scrape himself on the gravel.

After that, we started playing a survival
game similar to the game Sniper where
all of the campers would try to hide and
survive longest. It was a lot of fun and it
occupied us for hours until it was time
for dinner. Wyatt Schiff won the first
round and William won the second, but
everybody had a great time playing. After
the second round ended, we chilled for
a little while before dinner because we
were very tired after a busy afternoon.

Once dinner came around, people
emerged from their tents to the
unbelievably amazing smell of Philly
cheesesteaks, and once they were
finished cooking, we all chomped down
on the delicious dinner. After we cleaned
the dishes from dinner, we all sat around
the fire talking for a while before heading
to our tents for a good night's sleep before
starting the second part of our trip, the
river portion, tomorrow.

-Randy "Big O" Obstler
Day 4, August 9th

On the day of our resupply, we were
awoken by sounds of thunder and the
flashes of lightning around our campsite.
This was not good because today was the
day we had to break down camp, despite
the pouring rain and the thunderstorm
raging above us. After we took the rain
tarps off our tents it became a race
against Mother Nature to pack our tents
as quickly as possible before the rain
could completely soak them. Everything
did get soaked, though, and we piled into
the van and cranked the heat up to warm
ourselves after we jammed the trailer full
of our gear. We had Pop Tarts in the van
for breakfast on the way to the resupply
and we were happy to see it stop raining
just as we pulled out of our campsite.

We met Reid and Allagash I, driven
by Henry Kennedy, at the same spot we
had met Bank II earlier in the trip and

273

took the canoes from Gash I's trailer so
we would have boats for the river. At the
resupply we were told that it was going to
start raining heavily again that afternoon,
so Hib decided that we wouldn't open
any mail yet and we packed up the boats
quickly and got onto the water on our
way to our new campsite to try to beat
the weather.

We paddled across part of Grand Lake
Matagamon to the Matagamon Dam
where we portaged around the dam very
quickly and got into the East Branch of
the Penobscot River. Max Zimmerman
and Duncan Walsh both soloed the
portage. It was then a very short paddle
to Matagamon Campground for the night.
We made camp and prepared for the rain
we thought would hit any minute. Luckily
we got a long respite that allowed our
tents to dry while we gorged ourselves
on candy, fresh fruit, and beef jerky from
our resupply. Drew Matson and William
Yanes both got incredible amounts of
candy, so much that we couldn't eat it all
as a cabin! We hung around the campsite
for a while and then it started to rain so
we set up our rain flies to prevent our
tents from getting wet again.

For dinner, we feasted on Dank to
celebrate our resupply. Dank is Mac and
cheese with lots of meats and veggies in
it, and it was delicious. After finishing
the pasta, we realized the serving spoon
was bent from stirring the pot! After
dinner we piled into our tents for an
early night because of the big day before
us tomorrow. -Ryan "Goose" Silverman
Day 5, August 10th

This morning we packed up camp then
had breakfast, oatmeal with chia seeds,
and policed the site before getting into
the boats and heading down stream. We
had a decent paddle before Stair Falls,
which everyone did with ease. No one
flipped and we continued on through
the Haskell Dead Water to the Haskell
Rock portage. Haskell Rock is an insane
rapid that you must portage around, and
the trail lasts for about a half mile. We
took the boats first, then the gear and
were able to complete the portage very
quickly despite Ryan Silverman hurting
his back. He was putting down a canoe
with his partner when the canoe slipped.

hurting a muscle in his back. After the
portage, we packed up the boats and got
back on the river, with Wyatt moving to
Max's boat and Ryan into Buck's boat.

We did some pretty fun rips after
Haskell Rock, and Duncan and Drew
flipped. Our next portage arrived quickly,
this one even shorter than Haskell Rock.
We did the Pond Pitch portage very
quickly and had a nice lunch of PB & J
at the end of the trail. Then we hopped
back into the boats for an extremely short
paddle to Grand Pitch, our last portage
for the day. We did the boats, and then set
up camp. After camp was set up, we had
a snack, then went tubbing which was
really fun. Dinner that night consisted of
teriyaki chicken sandwiches, which were
delicious. We went to sleep optimistic
about the weather, which had been pretty
good today, because of the old saying,
"Red sky at night, sailor's delight; red sky
in the morning, sailor's take warning."

- Keegan "Freddy" Froschauer
Day 6, August 11th

This morning we woke up to nice
weather and quickly broke down
camp before munching on cereal bars
for breakfast. After our fast breakfast,
we immediately set about finishing
the Grand Pitch portage by taking the
rest of our gear down the trail to the
end. William and I pumped water for
everybody because it was very hot, while
the rest of the cabin began carrying gear.
We loaded up the boats and headed
down river for the shortest paddle yet, to
our last portage for the trip: the Hulling
Machine. H Machine took us about three
hours and was definitely the hardest
portage of the trip, but afterwards we
felt great for having accomplished it and
being done with portaging. Shortly after
the portage came Bowlin Falls, a brief
but difficult rapid on which William and
Randy flipped. Immediately after the falls
came Bowlin Camps, where we packed
Ryan into a Chevy Suburban driven by
Charlie and sent them off to the nearest
hospital to get a better idea of what was
going on with Ryan's back, which was
still preventing him from doing anything
other than lying still.

After our goodbyes, we had tuna
sandwiches and set off for the single

274

longest stretch of paddling on the trip.
We paddled for nearly three hours before
getting to our campsite, a really nice site
just above Whetstone Falls. Buck and
Hib bushwhacked down to the lower
sites below the rapid to check if Charlie
and/or Ryan were there, but they found
no one and headed back. Once back, Hib
started on dinner and Buck led us on a
search for dry firewood, of which there
was a ton. We had a delicious dinner
of beef stew and egg noodles and had a
huge fire before retiring to our tents for
a full night of sleep before Grindstone
tomorrow. - Graham "Gills" Nielsen
Day 7, August 12th

The second-to-last day of our trip
we woke up and broke down our tents
beneath a beautiful sunny sky and had
breakfast featuring Rice Krispy treats.
We got on the river and headed down
Whetstone Falls, which proved to be not
difficult and everybody made it down
without flipping. We pulled off at the
lower sites below the rapids to check
for Charlie and Ryan, but they were not
there, so we continued on our way. We
had about two hours of light paddling,
including some Gash Paddling, before
reaching a train trestle that spanned the
river. Somehow, Duncan and I managed
to flip on a large rock in the middle of
the perfectly calm river, but the sun was
out, so we dried quickly along with our
stuff. Once at the train bridge, a bunch
of us campers and Buck and Hib jumped
off the bridge before a train came by and
crossed over us, it was really cool to see
it up close and the engineer blew the
horn for us as he went by. The train was
very long as seemed to go on forever as
it was going by, but eventually it passed
and we made our way down river to the
picnic area where we were able to scout
the Grindstone rapids while we feasted
on a snack lunch.

We managed to get in contact with
Charlie and found out he and Ryan were
waiting for us a few miles down river at
our site for the night, Pinegrove. So we
excitedly strapped everything down and
set out down the rapid. We fared pretty
well, with only one flip and one super
swamp. William and Randy were the
one flip, and Graham and David Cantillo

275

managed to paddle their submerged boat
all the way to the end before pulling off to
the side to bail it out. We then continued
down river to Pinegrove where we set up
camp and then some of us played pickup
basketball before dinner, Gado Gado was
our dinner for the night, a peanut-soy
sauce on pasta that was delicious. After
cleaning up we hit the hay early because
we knew we were getting up early the
next day for our take out.

-Drew "Yoshi" Matson
Day 8, August 13th

For the last day of our trip, we woke
up very early and broke down camp
before having breakfast. Pop Tarts again.
We slipped our boats into the water
and headed down river under a thick
blanket of fog. That fog quickly burned
off though, and the sun came out for a
beautiful morning as we paddled to our
take-out, at a public beach in the town
of Medway, Maine. Bob Linker met us
at the beach at 10 AM and we loaded
all our gear and boats into the bus and
trailer and set off for camp. Around noon,
we stopped at Big G's Deli in Winslow,
Maine. We feasted on their delicious,
and huge, sandwiches before getting back
into the bus and finishing the drive back
to Kieve. Overall, we all agreed it was an
awesome trip, and everyone had a great
time. That included Ryan, who joined us
for the final day, after missing only one
day of the trip. -Duncan "Donuts" Walsh

Bank II

Penobscot

Trey Zenker, HBC

Day 1

We left camp on a beautiful morning
for Bigelow Mountain. The drive was
both long and interesting. Charlie DJ'd
throughout the entire journey, however,
which helped make the trip pretty fun,
I admit. Note to self: vague directions
will lead to confusion! For example, go
eighteen miles and turn on a dirt road...

Once we finally got to camp, we set
up tents and settled in. The site itself
was incredibly beautiful, consisting of a
sunny landscape and sitting on cool body
of water. To determine who would eat
dinner first our tent groups created skits

depicting what the counselors do with
their time off. Charlie, Michael, Parker,
and Andy S. won with a hysterical
display in multiple acts. For dinner, we
ate awesome cheese steaks cooked by the
counselors and built a blazing fire. We
sat around the fire and watched it burn
down as we talked into the night.

-Andy Spiers

Day 2

We rose fairly early to hike Bigelow
Mountain. The weather was nice with
only a few clouds in the sky. We started
by walking half a mile in the wrong
direction before we saw a logger who
told us to go back the way we came. We
then found the trailhead was quite close
to our campsite and set off. It was the
perfect temperature for hiking and the
trail was pleasantly shady. A little while
later we found a huge ditch off to the side
of the trail with a boat in it. God only
knows how a boat of that size had found
itself so far inland but it had and so we
carried on.

The hike up was absolutely amazing.
The trees around the steep path were
quite beautiful and the trail was still
enjoyable despite many fallen trees and
tiresome rocks. When we finally got to
the top, the view was unreal! All of the
land around us was green as far as the
eye could see. The lake was expansive
and we were pleased to be able to spot
exactly where we were camping from
the peak. Though it was very windy, we
started to cook bacon on the peak. Parker
masterfully served as the chef, applying
ample Worcestershire sauce. Though the
hike down was quite tiring, the double
cheeseburger dinner made everything
worthwhile. Exhausted after our long
hike, we got to bed early that night.

-Andrew Clark

Day 3

We woke up at about 8 AM, packed up
our tent, and headed to the Trout Brook
campsite in Baxter State Park. As we
were leaving, we noticed that a cabin of
Wavus girls were actually camping right
nearby so we went and said a quick hello!
The day consisted mostly of driving, but
it was a relaxing journey and everything
played out quite smoothly. That night,
Andy S. cooked us an incredible dinner

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despite the fact that it seems Uke our
double downs were stolen! Instead, we
feasted on meat sandwiches of burger,
bacon, and pepperoni. They were
delicious! Though we once again found
ourselves camped very close to a Wavus
group of the same age, we went to bed
fairly early and got a good night sleep.

-Max Van Aller

Day 4

Today we slept in and had the ultimate
breakfast complete with sausage, eggs,
cheese, and bacon. It was delicious. After
bomb-proofing the campsite and playing
a bit of Frisbee, we went on a short hike
up Trout Brook Mountain. It was not a
very challenging hike, but the view was
spectacular and surprising. Here, like on
the top of Bigelow, we also cooked bacon
and it was equally delicious. After the
descent, we hopped in the van and drove
to the natural water slides, just barely
missing the wind and the rain that came
out of nowhere.

The waterslides were a ton of fun,
but when we got back to the campsite,
we decided that our clothing wasn't wet
enough and so we jumped off the sweet
bridge nearby! Sam bravely did a back
flip off of the bridge before just about
everybody in the cabin jumped off the
bridge in unison! Afterwards, Trey made
us an incredible quesadilla fiesta! Overall
it was a great day and we all went to bed
with high hopes for the next day!

-Sam Czaja

Day 5

Today was a fine day but one might say
we had a little bit of bad luck. We started
by making delicious corn beef hash
for breakfast. Then, midway through
eating, Wavus stopped to say goodbye.
Afterwards, we encountered one of our
first challenging tasks: grey watering.
Here, some brave brothers stepped up to
help out the group as best as they could.

We proceeded to get in the van and
drive over to Double-Top Mountain.
The hike was steep the whole way up,
but it was without question one of the
most rewarding hikes yet. At the peak of
the northern face we were engulfed by a
thunder/lightening/hail/rain storm and
had to huddle up with our rain jackets.
It was a very fun experience to see the

277

storm coming towards us and then
to watch it passing over. At the end of
the storm, a rainbow formed below us.
What a sight! We had a quick tuna fish
lunch and started our way back down the
mountain.

At the bottom we all got back in the
van and drove back to our campsite.
Starting a fire got very complicated
but Chris Mackey ultimately saved the
day. Though dinner took a long time to
cook, the chili and rice meal was truly
satisfying after our long and successful
day. - Harry Makovsky

Day 6

We rose to an overcast sky and, more
thankfully, M&M pancakes. There were
strict rules about the distribution of
the M&Ms. The packaging consisted of
exclusively yellow M&Ms with three
brown ones for counselors only. Though
it seemed very sketchy for us campers,
the counselors appeared to find them
to be exquisite. At about 11:30 AM we
started the Burnt Mountain Hike, which
is about 1.3 miles. We got to the top of the
mountain and had a nice view of Double
Top Mountain, the mountain that we had
conquered the previous day. We got to
the base and made lunch (grilled cheese
and tomato soup). The stove, yet again,
kept malfunctioning until we managed
to temporarily fix the device.

All of us then jumped in the car to
"Little Niagara", a waterfall where you
can jump into the current and jump right
back out. We arrived at the site prepared
for the .9 mile hike to the waterfall. The
whole hike was flat, with no real climbs
or drops. We first went to Little Niagara,
realizing quickly that it was too rocky to
jump off of. We then walked about 500
feet to Big Niagara, a larger scale version
of the first. Luckily, there were not as
many rocks in the water which meant it
was safe to jump in. Nobody wanted to
jump first, so Trey was brave enough to
step up and jump into the icy waters (and
when I say icy, I mean icy). Everyone,
including Chris Mackey, jumped in.
When we got back to camp, we jumped
right in to our warm clothes and once
again started making chili and rice as we
sat around the fire on a cold night.

-Charlie Hansen

Day 7

Today was the first day of river
paddling. We woke up to Trey shaking
our tents. It was a sunny day so it was
easy to pack everything up. Then we
hopped in the van and drove to the
pickup site. While we were there, we
found a glorious felt hat. We decided
that the orange bow on it was not chill
enough, so we ripped it off and gave it to
the sassiest of our group. Brooks Biddle
who would wear it as a bowtie for the
remainder of the trip. Henry McNeill
would hold on to the hat for the rest of
the trip. Then an hour and a half later,
Reed came to resupply us and we started
on the second half of our trip.

Next we did some lake paddling, we
portaged, and did some river paddling to
our campsite right on the East Branch of
the Penobscot. After setting up camp, we
headed up to the dam and drifted down
the river. By the time we got back to the
campsite, Long Voyage 1 was there and
greeted us warmly. Then we got back
to our tents and ate Philly cheesesteaks
while Ben was obsessing over the bacon,
egg, and cheese that we picked up at
the general store. Finally we sat around
a camp fire, eating mallows and talking
until bed time. - Henry McNeill

Days

We woke up today to a stunning
morning at our campsite and quickly
embarked on the river part of the day.
After paddling around for about 2 miles,
we had reached Haskell Rock, the spot
for our first portage. It was about ^^ of
a mile long and the terrain was really
easy. As soon as we started back on
the river, we ran into a set of class 2
rapids. Unfortunately, two of our boats
flipped over and their passengers were
submerged into the frigid water. After
recovering from the accident, we thought
we had reached our second portage of
the day. However, Trey and Ben scouted
out the trail and decided that we could
manage the first set of rapids safely.

After traveling the rapids, we powered
through our Pond Pitch portage which
had been greatly shortened as a direct
result of bypassing much of the trail via
the river. But then we realized something
bad had happened. We were missing

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one of our wannigans. Sadly, Trey and
Ben had to swim upstream and find
the wannigan, which turned out to be
brought by LV2. Two hours later we goton
the river again, reaching our campsite at
Grand Pitch quickly.

As soon as we got to the campsite, we
only had to portage our canoes to the
next out-in. We had 2 extra canoes, so
everybody in the cabin worked together
in the name of brotherly love and soloed
the canoe there. Then we had a nice fire
and had a well-needed night's sleep.
What a great day. -Michael Senko

Day 9

Today we woke up to rain. Trey's voice,
and brown sugar Pop Tarts. We took all
of our gear to the canoes and started on
our journey. After five or ten minutes
of small rips, we got pulled out to the
Hulling Machine portage. This is what we
dreaded. It probably should have taken
an hour but it took three. Long Voyage 2
was half-way done with theirs when we
went back to paddling. I think it was so
challenging because we were tired from
the day before. After about 15 miles of
paddling we arrived at our campsite.
Long Voyage 2 stole our original one, and

as a result we ended up next to Wavus
and some questionable neighbors (Trey
referred to them as the "rednecks"). We
quickly made chili and cooked some pep
and bacon. It was a pretty hard day but
we got through it. -Andrew Dorman
Day 10

Today we got up a little bit later than
usual due to heavy rain. Trey decided
we would have M&M oatmeal. It was
delicious and warming on that cool
morning. Shortly afterward, we packed
up and were on the river. After a while
of deadwater and a few small rapids,
we reached Grindstone. Grindstone is
a group of rapids that is known by all
Kievers for its tendency to flip the canoes.
Needless to say we were worried.

We stopped for a quick lunch of cold
cuts and pep before attacking the rapids.
Within 30 seconds of starting the first
set, 2 of our boats had flipped. Before
long, a third boat became so full of water
that its passengers could do nothing to
save it from flipping. Luckily, none of
our counselors flipped and they helped
us bail and flip the boats back over.
Conversely, LV2 came behind us and
wrapped a canoe around a rock... After

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that, it was an easy two-mile paddle to
the end despite heavy rain. By now we
were all soaked from the constant rain
and river. Then, out of nowhere, the
counselors bought us some delicious
pizza and Cokes that we shared with LV2
at the campsite. It was truly a perfect
day. -Michael Senko

Day 11

Today we woke up early at Pinegrove
and jumped in the canoes as soon as
we could. We paddled through little
rapids and dead water for a while. Then
we arrived at a playground and chilled
until THE ONE picked us up. Afterwards
we picked up a hitchhiker that had just
finished the Appalachian Trail. This
man strongly resembled Walter and was
perfectly kind. After about 30 minutes, we
dropped off the hiker and the counselors
drove us straight to McDonalds. The food
was heavenly and we were able to eat so
much that one person almost threw up.
What a trip! -Henry McNeill

Allagash I
Allagash Waterway
Roscoe Wetlaufer

Day 1:

The boys of Allagash got off to a
mighty start, backed by bright blue skies.
The legendary "One" drove us up to our
put-in, and cracked a pack of Magic: the
Gathering cards to boot. Cold cuts were
nowhere to be seen, but we hit the water
with a snack in our bellies. Big Island
was soon in coming, and there we gorged
ourselves on Double Downs. As the night
waned, the boys of LVII cruised on in.
Around a fire we had a rollicking good
time. And before we knew it, our first
day was done.

Day 2:

Awakening to an early morning fog, we
made our way down the river. A number
of map checks later, the waterway
widened. A tiny town appeared out in the
distance, and we pulled into Chesuncook
Village. The boys gobbled up fudge and
root beer, and the counselors decided
two loaves of homemade bread was a
worthwhile purchase. Navigation and
camper questions dealt with, we dragged
our way up a small stream to the dam.
PB&J, a shot across the lake, and large
cairn and we had reached the fabled Mud
Pond. Starting the portage out strong.
Cam and Roscoe finished in a torrential
downpour. Jake's drama-ridden crew
got lost, Connor dropped paddles, and
Austin hid under a tree. Aborting the
mission, we retreated to camp, hiding out
under a tarp with spicy Mexican burritos
in our hands. The boys went to bed, cold
and battered, but not defeated.
Day 3:

We awoke to dark skies and after
gathering water, launched back into
the portage. Jared was gifted a hoodie,
and recovered from a crushing bout
of shivers. Those who soloed finished
strong, and Grey heroically went back
for a floaty. All in, the kids were total
champs. By the end of the portage the
skies were blue, and three other groups,
including Outward Bound and Maine
Adventure, had started out on the trail.
Making our way down a narrow shallow
river, we bounced between boats and ran
down rapids. The short run was a blast,
and a definite highlight of the trip. We
finished out the day with superb Dank,
holding bacon and onions in a helmet
more manly than man can measure.
Day 4:

Jay labeled Cam a communist in the
morning, and our day had begun. We
played some Magic: the Gathering to
rest up, which Austin immediately
took to, before setting out in the boats.
At our resupply, Parfait was loved by
everybody. Reid brought us nearly
infinite supplies, save sunscreen. Later,
we learned the boys had enough stashed
irregardless. For hours we fought against
the headwinds, joking of Pokemon. It
was decided that Jay was a Bidoof. After

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waiting on Gravel Beach and not playing
with sticks, we left, Mike Orr nowhere
to be seen. Finally we finished out our
night with superb Philly cheesesteaks,
and brownies cooked up by Mother
Nature herself.
Day 5:

Waking up early, the boys rocked the
socks off Chamberlain Lake. At the dam
we cooked up some mean brats. Carrying
around we hit another series of lakes,
starting with Eagle. We saw some sweet
kayaker bros, who were fishing. On a
sour note, they later stole our destined
campsite at Farm Island, denying us
"Spooky Stories." Scouting ahead for
trams. Cam, Duncan, Jay, and Roscoe
got an early look at the steel behemoths.
Landing at Priestly in offish headwinds,
we set up tents for the night. After a few
hours' rest, camper Cam and Duncan
cooked up cold burgers which were later
washed down by hot chocolate.
Day 6:

Early in the morning, Roscoe made
breakfast sammies. Scattered rain left
the boys in a general state of discontent,
but we hit the water nonetheless. Pulling
into Scofield Point about noon, we met
some non-hostile new friends. John, the
eldest, and his scout leader son, gifted up
pumpkin whoopie pies, real pizza, and
good stories. According to Jake, hurricane
force winds blew in, but luckily we
secured the coolers. Meanwhile, Logan
jumped about playfully in the wind.
After the storm, the pizza was finished.
Duncan's birthday proved to be solid.
Day 7:

In the morning, hash was cooked
up en-masse by master chef Cam. We
pulled slowly up the Chamberlain Dam,
making sure not to get pulled down. First
checking the right side, we managed to
turn left. Roscoe told a ranger we had
been out on the river for three days, and
a ranger talked us straight. We cruised
down Chase Rapids, without a single
slip. Back on the lakes, Roscoe and Jay
saw a moose up close, that many only
gazed on from afar. Headwinds battered
us once more across Umsaskis Lake, and
The Ledges were long in coming. The
campsite proved incredible, as promised
by Reid. Wood was gathered, the Dank

proved insane in amount and deliciousity,
and Tyler and Connor couldn't finish.
Day 8:

For breakfast, we downed oatmeal.
Cam ate it cold. Long Lake proved not to
be all that long, and we dabbled in Gash-
paddling before darker weather showed
up. Camper Cam announced he was
under the weather. In addition, dating
advice was handed out. Eagerly, Grey
and Sam gobbled it up.

The team made fast work of the carry,
as a quiet group stood by. On and off
showers pelted us through the night.
Maine, you weird. At camp, we played
Magic: the Gathering to waste the day
away.
Day 9:

Having gotten ahead of ourselves
somewhat, we woke up incredibly late.
Pancakes overloaded with M&Ms started
the day off right. Roscoe and Logan
pumped water, and we finally hit the
river proper. A lazy paddling sesh was
interrupted cruelly by bad weather, but
this was nothing new. Pulling into Five
Fingers South, a decision was made to
stay put. The campsite proved buggy but
delightful. For dinner we ate Gatto Gatto,
cooked over a fire it proved the boys'

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demise. And, Cam finally got to tell a
scary story.
Day 10:

Popping down Pop-Tarts, we hit the
fast flowing river. At the ranger station,
we got good weather news and a snack.
Without a substantial pushing, we were
nearing Gash Falls before noon. Lunch
of PB&J led to seconds and thirds. The
boys then attacked the portage with vigor
and vim. Within an hour the entire thing
had been beasted. Allagash Falls proved
a beautiful sight and an ideal photo-op
spot. Cam cut open a kayak, and we lazed
down the river to our next campsite.
Sam tended the fire, Connor pumped
water, and Tyler helped Cam cook up
the cheesiest chili in Kieve history. Hot
cocoa was brought out and there was
much rejoicing.
Day 11:

From McKeen Brook campsite we
pushed on. A breakfast of oatmeal in our
bellies, we loaded the boats. Leisurely
rafting up brought us to EvehTi's utterly
bug-infested campsite. At the campsite,
Evelyn was nowhere to be seen. At
the store the stock was lackluster.
Irregardless, we bought double-sized
Reeses. Potter and Jake swam upstream,
enjoying the cooling current. Afterwards,
for dinner, we ate rice and beans with a
splash of pepperoni. The boys tucked in
as the lights went out and bugs came in.
Day 12:

A late start was plaimed, but impending
lightning pushed us out of our tents on
the open field and under the bridge.
Hanging there for thirty-odd minutes,
we passed the time with Dungeons and
Dragons. Breakfast bars and bros, and we
were back on the river. Exceptional rapids
under dark skies greeted us, with some of
the best high water of the outing. Snack

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attack after snack attack filled our bellies.
Henry Kennedy showed up in style, and
soon left. A few games of Emperor, a three
on three variant of Magic: the Gathering,
yielded a number of counselor victories.
To cheers of "Scandinavia Ya!" we
downed Mooseshack Pizza, and then we
sent promptlv to bed.
Day 13:

Early in the morning we woke, to
Cam's eternal joy. Henry Kennedy drove
us to Bank I, where we delighted in
Buck's armory, and Duncan was reunited
with his cousin Hib Skank. Our next
stop was to see Voyage, and change over
a set of canoes. The boys proved perfect
angels on the bus. Finally, the gold-
shrouded Happy China rose up in the
distance. The team attacked the buffet
and bathrooms with unrivaled ferocity.
After a third round of desserts, Jake was
still hungry, but we ushered ourselves
out. Back at Kieve the boys spoke with
poise, enlightening the JK campers as to
what lay ahead were they to return. That
night, Southover proved a tad bit rainy,
but we were in our beds before dark.
Day 14:

Waking up late at Southover, we
delighted at real cereal and milk. The
boys lazed on the dock and asked many a
question before the counselors relented.
Deciding to head to the Mills, we packed
up and headed out. Jay got encouraged,
Austin made some mad moves, and
Camper Cam did a flip. After an hour of
jumping, and some unwise decisions,
we rolled out. Rite Aid and Round Top
rounded out our ride. Irregardless, we
returned to Southover, leaving not a
singular trace. Boating back ended our
trip in epic style, under a glorious sun,
on a fine Kieve day.

Allagash II
Allagash Waterway
Mike Orr, HBC

7/29

The day was finally here. The boys
had been chomping at the bit to get out
of camp and the time was now. With
The One behind the wheel, we departed
around 6:00 in order to get on the river
by lunchtime. Never short on stories, The
One dropped some lumen knowledge on
us to pass the time. Around noon we
pulled up to Hannibal's Crossing, the
put-in for our thirteen-day excursion.
We bid The One goodbye and set off for
Big Island. Our first campsite might have
been the best of the trip with an amazing
view of the West Branch of the Penobscot.
Philly cheesesteaks were on the menu
and they were very well received. We
retired to our tents soon after. -Mike Orr
7/30

This is our second day on our trip and
all is quiet on the Allagash front. This
morning we woke up after a massive
rain and thunderstorm and took down
our tents after we had double-stacked
bacon, egg, and cheeses. After that we
paddled for an hour or so until we got
to Chesuncook Village where we got
some root beer and fudge in flavors like
original, peanut butter, raspberry, and
maple walnut. The root beer was in old
Budweiser bottles, but tasted excellent.
We then lake paddled for a good while
and eventually reached our campsite
after being aided by a strong tailwind. For
dinner we had amazing double downs.

-Will Close

7/31

So today we hit the Mud Pond portage,
the Super Bowl of the Allagash as Nolan
would say. Mike said that it was the
wettest he has ever seen it and he is a
seasoned pro. It took nearly six hours
and we had lunch at the end of the
trail. Will and Buford both impressively
soloed the whole 1.8 miles, while Paul
helped out on multiple canoes. The
actual Mud Pond followed the portage
and it certainly deserves the name. We
spent the night at Gravel Beach and had
what many claimed was the best Dank
they've ever had. -Ellis Cooper

8/1

Today marked the first day of August
and let's just say that there were some
standout paddlers (Ducky, Charlie, and
Myles). Today was our one and only
resupply. Walter delivered the goods and,
by goods, I mean the wans and coolers.
He also brought ice cold Docta Peppas.
It was an 8-mile paddle there and back,
with the mojo boat showing up everyone
else and finishing miles ahead of the rest
of the cabin. On the way back we saw
Gash 3 and I must say they looked highly
unprofessional.

When we got back to Gravel Beach, we
realized that we got pranked. Of all the
pranks that happened, this one was bad,
meaning not good. They switched our
sleeping bags with other sleeping bags,
but they're just jealous. At the campsite
we read and ate the baked goods that
Hanna and Janie provided, they're
angels. Then came dinner and we had
Philly cheesesteaks. All in all today was
a good day. -Jack "Ducky" Gaffney

8/2

The day started before we woke up.
There was a thunderstorm late last
night that woke up most everyone in the
cabin. I did not wake up though. I had
a dream. My dream took place at the
playground where Bank is picked up. It
involved gummy bears and boats. Then
I woke up around 7:30ish. We were on
Chamberlain Lake in no time and didn't
have breakfast until we reached the other
side. I got a brown sugar and cinnamon
Pop Tart. I prefer strawberry to BSC Pop
Tarts, but don't tell anyone because I'll
be judged. It rained all day up until we
got to Priestly Point. We set up our tents
and had grilled cheese and tomato soup.
We pretty much chilled the rest of the
day. Dinner was bacon burgers, which
were awesome. I got a second because of
my awesome pick-up line. -Jamie Holt
8/3

The 6th day began with rain. We
packed up everything as quickly as we
could to not get it wet. The trip cook
Mike Orr offered an awesome breakfast:
bacon, egg, and cheese sandwiches.
Typical American stuff. Amazing. So
after breakfast we started to paddle.
Everybody was pumped, only three

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miles to go! So after a bit of lake paddling
we could see the campsite. But no sir,
someone took it before us. We had lunch
and then tried our luck at sailing for
about 20 minutes. Next campsite we saw
some green canoes. Gash 1 maybe? We
decided to press on for Churchill Dam.
It might have been my favorite campsite
of the trip. There was even a water pump
where we could fill up our water bottles.
Mike and Nolan bought a shirt each. For
dinner we had double downs, maybe one
of my favorites. Will and I set up a great
fire. -Paul Justenhoven

8/4

Day 7 was the ultimate chill day. We
decided to stay at the same campsite the
whole day. We explored the museum at
the dam and even saw a picture of Kieve
campers from the 1950s paddling down
the Allagash. With the help of Ducky
and Thead, Nolan and I made pizzas for
dinner that tasted excellent. Thead and
Nolan had a speed-eating challenge that
Nolan easily won. Everyone went to bed
thinking about the rapids we would be
encountering in a few hours. -Mike Orr
8/5

The day started as planned. We had a
fairly early start from the dam and brought
our gear over to the ranger. She drove it
up the river so we could pick it up after
Chase Rapids. The first rapids went fine
with no flips and barely any rocks hit. It
was the second set when things started to
get bad. Mike and I went down the rapids
fine until one point when a single big
rock caught us by surprise and we almost
flipped. This was the same rock that Ellis
and Buford flipped on. The rest of the
rapids were fairly uneventful and, after
paddling down the river, we reached

Umsaskis Lake. The headwinds here
were miserable and I don't think anyone
had fun. At the campsite, Myles had a
bag of Starbursts and Nolan assigned Seal
Team Six (Charlie, Ducky, and myself) to
confiscate the candy. The Ghost Protocol
mission was a success. Goodnight, book.

-Kiefer "Bobey" Martin

8/6

After staying at Sandy Point for a night,
we paddled through Long Lake and
Harvey Pond and eventually returned to
the river after a short portage. From there
my boat Gash paddled downstream until
we realized how far behind we were. Not
knowing which direction to go, Nolan
and I took a wrong turn and went down
a small, swampy stream. After losing my
flip-flop, we pushed our way down the

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stream and under the upcoming bridge.
The rest of the cabin was waiting for us at
a rock in the middle of the river. We kept
paddhng towards our campsite, which
ended up being taken by the BSA.

When we reached our backup site, the
cabin quickly set up camp and started
making dinner and filling up water
bottles. Uncle Ben's with pep and bacon
was for dinner. After chowing that down
we called it a day and went to our tents.

-Myles Patton

8/7

Today we woke up at 8:00 and had six
pounds of corned beef hash, which was
very filling. We were on the river by 9:30
and nearly an hour in we hit three miles
of dead water. After that, the water started
moving a bit more and we paddled to the
ranger station where we replenished our
depleted water supply. We had a lunch
of pep and cheese along with a snack of
Rice Krispy treats.

After lunch, we hit some small rapids
along with a lot of backwater to get to
AUagash Falls. Once there. Ducky, Will,
Myles, Kiefer, and myself soloed without
the counselors touching any gear. After
we set up tents and the tarp, we went
cliff jumping below the falls. We jumped
from both sides of the river into a strong
current. Everyone tubbed which helped

eliminate the nasty stink that lingered.
We then came back up to the campsite
where Will and Paul made an excellent
fire while Mike cooked up a mean chili.

-Buford Reid

8/8

We woke at 8:45 to a breakfast of Pop
Tarts and Nutri-Grain bars. We soon
finished the rest of the portage and
pressed on towards Allagash Village. Not
long into the paddle we took a picture
next to the sign announcing the end of
the Allagash Wilderness Waterway. We
had a floating lunch of PB and J's. Nolan
and Mike had another Pop Tart just to
annoy us. Soon enough we arrived at
Gash Village and our terrific counselors
treated us to Pepsis and cookies.

Unexpectedly we saw a Kieve orange
bus pulling into the campsite with Henry
Kennedy behind the wheel. He not only
brought chips, Gatorade, and fruit, but
also Jamie. The counselors were so
generous and refused to take any council
privileges. Buford and Paul cooked up
a great beef stew. We retired early with
simply one day more before the people
sing. -Charlie Streator

8/9

It is the last day on the Allagash. All is
well and the cabin is as complete as when
we started the trip. Today we woke up for

WILDERNESS

1^

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our last day of paddling; all of us excited
and disappointed. We were all amped
that we had finished the Allagash, but it
was bittersweet because we had a truly
amazing time. After a filling oatmeal
breakfast, we were off to meet Reid. We
paddled at a leisurely pace because we
Gash paddled the whole time. When we
arrived, Reid gave us amazing pizzas and
soda. -Will Close

8/10

Our 13th and final day began early as
we piled into the van with Reid around
7:30. The long day was broken up with
multiple rounds of the iPod shuffle game
and a stop at Big G's. Unfortunately,
there was no Jorge Posada sighting. Our
amazing thirteen-day journey came to a
satisfying end. -Mike Orr

Allagash III
Allagash Waterway
Nat Shenton, HBC

7/30-Day 1

We had an early start, waking up at
5 o'clock in the morning. We finished
packing our bags to get ready for the
Allagash. After a quick breakfast of cereal
from Pasquaney, we had a five and a half
hour car ride with The One. We arrived
at the West Branch of the Penobscot to
have a lazy paddle down the river. Sal
and Pete's boat started a water fight with
Bob and Joe's boat along the way. We
also saw several bald eagles. Once at our
campsite at Big Island, Bob and Joseph
caught three white perch that we ate. We
also had a nice meal of cheesesteaks, too.
After dinner we had a short campfire and
then hit the hay. -Keelan Woodward
7/31-Day 2

Today, we woke up at five again. I was
thankful for my tent-mates for waking me
up. We were all very tired from the early
wake up. We had bacon, egg, and cheeses
for breakfast and hit the river around
seven. We paddled for three hours of dead
water until we finally stopped for fudge
and root beer at The Store in Chesuncook
Village. From there we paddled across
the lake toward the Mud Pond portage.
Right before the portage we had to drag
our canoes up a stream which was an
unpleasant surprise. We finally reached

the portage trail around two-thirty.

There we had a lunch of pepperoni
and cheese and hit the trail. We carried
the canoes across, there is not much to
say; it was terrible. Nat and Pete both
soloed, giving us two boats to take across.
Once all the boats were on the other side
we hiked back down the trail to have a
dinner of double-downs. We hit the tents
early not knowing what tomorrow would
hold. -Joseph Riley

8/1- Day 3

After waking up with our backs
still aching, we started to prepare
for the second half of the mud-pond
portage, wannigans, tents, and bags. We
successfully portaged in just one and half
hours, and then started our traverse of
the real Mud Pond. Once we finished the
pond, we canoed Mud Stream with was
an ultra-low-water rapid. Soon we were
on Chamberlain Lake, and decided to eat
lunch at Gravel Beach. To our excitement
we saw all of Gash Two's tents and
equipment set up, yet all of the cabin out
collecting their resupply. So we decided
to play a friendly prank on them. Soon
after we leave for our journey to Boy
Scout. We pass Gash 2 on their return,
and we exchange words. The headwinds
helped our rival cabin but severely
disadvantaged us, causing us to have to
paddle for over 3 hours. We arrived very
tired. We made a set of polish horseshoe
poles to pass the time while we waited
for pesto chicken alfredo pasta.

-Luca Perper

8/2 - Day 4

We woke up to rain, the first of the
trip. Sadly, we had to wake up anyway
to go to our resupply, thankfully it was
close by, so we were wet for only a short
while. At the resupply, we got incredible
4-layer brownies from Maggie, alongside
mail, care packages, and soda and berries
from T.J., who drove the resupply truck.
Freshly loaded up we headed back up
the lake to our campsite, called Gravel
Beach. By now the rain had stopped, so
we ate cold cuts and began relaxing by
the beach. Wavus passed us, but sadly
continued on to a different campsite.
Undeterred, we continued enjoying
the radiant day, as we began to think
about dinner, Long Voyage dropped by.

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and camped next to us. We had Italian
sausages with saute veggies for dinner.
We hung out with them for the remainder
of the night until the rain returned and
we played care until it was time for bed.

-Buddy Burrows.

8/3-Day 5

We woke up before Long Voyage,
and had a great breakfast of bacon, egg,
and cheese sandwiches. We paddled
up Chamberlain to Lock Dam, which
we carried around. We then had some
easy rapids, and continued on towards
Pillsbury Island. About halfway there
we had to stop because we heard a large
thunderstorm. We had just enough time to
improvise a trail to a safe clearing and set
up the rain tarp before it started pouring.
We waited for the storm to pass and had
trail mix under the tarp as a snack. After
it passed us, we loaded up the boats and
continued on to the campsite. It was very
nice and grassy.

We ate a lunch of Reubens, and started
killing time. We mostly played Magic
and polish horseshoes and fished, until
a delicious dinner of fajitas. After dinner
we play more Magic. Sal fell asleep in a
hammock, then promptly fell out, woke
up and didn't know what happened. Even
he laughed about it, when he figured it
out. We went to bed awaiting day 6.

- Bob Zintl

8/4-Day 6

Today, we woke up at six-thirty for one
of the longest days of the trip. After an
hour of waking up, we had a breakfast of
bagels and cream cheese. At eight, we got
on the water and paddled for two hours.
We saw a group that we saw again when
we stopped at the trains and had Ritz
crackers. The trains were really cool, we
paddled for another two hours across
Eagle Lake.

When we reached Churchill Lake
we went hard for ten minutes to reach
the campsite after a Snickers bar. We
reached Scofield Point for lunch, we had
a humus and veggie lunch. We vegged all
afternoon and played some Magic and
polish horseshoes. For dinner we had
barbecue chicken pizza. Afterward we
still vegged by hearing Sal quotes read
by Buddy and Luca until bed.

-Sal Saurez

8/5-Day 7

We enjoyed a rare late wakeup. After a
scrumptious breakfast of Oreo pancakes,
we loaded up the boats for a brief paddle
to Jaws. Due to a sore neck and the short
paddle, the boat groups were changed
and some bowmen experimented the
life of a sternman, Joseph and Luca
specifically. Arriving at Jaws, for a lunch
of peanut butter and jelly. We spent the
afternoon with the Wavus Allagash.
After a dinner of pesto chicken alfredo,
we played cards, talked, told stories, and
played a game of Mafia.

-Keelan Woodward

8/6-Day 8

We woke up and left our campsite
quickly, having breakfast on the water.
We paddled down to Chases Rapids,
where the ranger portaged our gear
around the rapids. We shot the rapids,
and the water was pretty so we had a
great time. Luckily, not one flipped or
anything. After the rapids we stopped
to pick up our gear, and paddle down
the river. We had nasty headwinds on
Umsaskis Lake making the crossing long
and annoying. On the far side of the lake
we had a lunch of pepperoni and cheese.
We had another lake to paddle thru until
our campsite.

We finally reached the campsite only
to find that it was taken by another group.
We had to keep on pushing to Long Lake
Dam, an extra hour an a half of paddling.
When we finally got there, we all took
naps until dinner of river rice. After
dinner we all went immediately back to
bed. -Joseph Riley

8/7-Day 9

We woke up and left our campsite with
our stomachs filled with oatmeal. We set
off for was to be another long day. On the
way we saw countless bald eagles, and,
when going round one river meander, we
had a very close encounter with a moose.
After going thru the various deadwaters,
little rips, and Round Pond we arrived
at our campsite. Five Fingers. Here we
had a lunch of grilled cheese and tomato
soup.

We spent the afternoon reading and
playing Magic. All of us swam the little
wave outside the campsite countless times
as well. To add to the entertainment, Sal

Suarez decided to chuck Keelan 's Frisbee
into the middle of the river, which then
shot off into the distance. Keelan and
Sal had to get into a canoe and chase the
Frisbee. However, the Frisbee went so
far that Peter and Buddy had to support
them. For this we had dinner skit, which
we a song and dance. Both tents were
outrageous and very funny. The dinner
was a Kieve classic. Dank!! After two
solid day of paddling we were very tired
and headed off to bed. -Luca Perper
8/8-Day 10

We started Day 10 with a quick and
hearty breakfast of oatmeal. We left Five
Fingers and set off for Allagash Falls. It
was overcast and raining, but nobody's
spirits were dampened. We got very
close to a young female white-tailed
deer. When we got to Michaud Farm,
the ranger informed us that we would
be doing a service project with him at
Allagash Falls. We paddled downstream
to the falls. The falls had the only other
significant portage besides Mud Pond.
Bob, Luca, Keelan, Joe, and Sal all soloed
a part of the portage.

When we finished the portage, the
ranger arrived and we started the project
of rebuilding the fire pits at the falls.
Joe, Bob, and Buddy carried new rocks
to the pits, while Luca, Keelan, and Sal
helped the ranger remove the old rocks
and add the new ones. After the project
was completed, we had soup for lunch,
and then relaxed swam at the falls. We
jumped off a rock at the falls as well.
After the dinner skits, we ate a glorious
dinner of chili and quinoa. Lastly, we
played cards and talked before we went
to bed, not knowing what the next day
would bring. -Bob Zintl

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8/9-Day 11

We woke up to another overcast day,
and just as we were eating our breakfast
of Pop Tarts, a thunderstorm rolled thru
the campsite. We were forced to wait
out the storm until we could finish
the portage from yesterday. It was a
relatively short paddle, and we ate our
lunch of pep and cheese at our campsite
in Allagash Village, only after completing
the Allagash Wilderness Waterway, and
shooting some pretty big rapids on the
way. Playing ultimate Frisbee with some
boys from another trip was the highlight
to a pretty uneventful afternoon at the
campsite. We had delicious gatto gatto
for dinner, and went to bed as the sky
cleared for the first time all day.

-Buddy Burrows

8/10-Day 12

We woke up at seven-thirty and had
oatmeal for breakfast. We had massive
tailwinds while we were on the river,
which pretty much pushed us to down
the river without paddling. Luca and Bob
tried to sail with a trash bag, which started
a water fight with Nat and Keelan's boat.
Luca fell into the water with his pjs on.
We shot three of the biggest rapids on
the trip on the way to the campsite. We
reached Pelletier's at eleven-forty in time
for a lunch of peanut butter and jelly. We
played Magic for almost the entire time,
besides a short game of ultimate Frisbee.
Walter came with seven pizzas around
seven o'clock. We all ate as much pizza
as we could with Keelan eating ten slices.
We ate so much that everyone went to
bed; we were all stuffed. -Sal Saurez
8/11-Day 13

At six-thirty I woke the boys up to get
ready to get back to camp. After a short
breakfast of Pop Tarts, we loaded up the
trailer and hit the road for a seven-hour
drive back to camp. On the way we made
a brief stop at Pine Grove to pick up Long
Voyage Two's canoes. For lunch, we
feasted at Five Guys' in Bangor, where
everyone had so much French fries it was
silly. We made it back to camp around
three-thirty. All and all it was great trip
on the Allagash, this year. I couldn't of
asked for a better trip.

-Nat Shenton, HBC

Long Voyage I
The Long Voyage
Ned Beckwith, HBC

Day 1

On the morning of July 26, I barely
noticed the rain and miserable weather
because I was so excited that the day had
finally come to embark on our 18-day
soul search in the Maine wilderness. We
said a quick goodbye to the rest of camp
at breakfast, loaded into Courage II and
drove up to The Birches in Rockwood,
with Thomas "The One" Nadolny's
playlist titled "Kieve Boyz" providing
the soundtrack for the entire trip.

Once we arrived at The Birches and
unloaded the bus, we were able to
finally get to know each other a little
better around a fire. After essentially
two full days of packing for our trip,
I was grateful that we were finally in a
place where we could be uninterrupted
and begin forming our LVI brotherhood.
Unfortunately the bonding had to be
cut a little short, as we had to get to bed
and get a few hours of sleep because we
would be waking up before sunrise in
order to beat the notorious headwinds on
Moosehead Lake. From this point on, the
trip notes will be written by one of the
boys, with a few censors on my part.
Day 2

The morning after getting dropped off
by The "One," we woke up at 4 AM. We
packed up the tents in the dark and loaded
up our boats. After taking a look at the
maps, and a quick breakfast of Pop Tarts
and homemade pie made by the Kaback
family, we took off. We paddled for a
couple miles through heavy headwinds
and whitecaps until we pulled into a
cove for a snack of Cheez-Its. Then we
headed across the lake for a few more
miles until we reached the campsite.
The headwinds picked up so we rafted
up and ate a good lunch of PP&J.

Once we were refueled, the group took
off straight for the campsite. Finally,
tired from a day of paddling 12 miles, we
pulled into the site. Finished with setting
up tents, a few campers went fishing
while the others swam and jumped off
the small rock looking out onto the water.
It was a good day. -Bo Hawkes

289

Day 3

The following day we got to sleep
in a bit. We woke up around eight and
immediately packed up, ate breakfast
and began paddling. We paddled
about two miles to the beginning of the
infamous Northeast Carry. We pulled the
canoes up, put our packs on, and began
the portage. Among those soloing were
Bruce Haywood, Ben Fox, Bo Hawkes
and Dylan Gaffney. Everyone did a
great job. We finished the portage and
stopped at the end for a lunch of cold cut
sandwiches.

Stomachs full, we set out to paddle
eight miles of the Penobscot. After a lot
of paddling we finally arrived at our
campsite. After unloading and beaching
the canoes, a couple of boys went fishing
and caught several fish but nothing big
enough to keep. Finally after a pesto
pasta dinner, we all fell asleep. It was a
day to remember. -Sam Zintl

Day 4

In the morning, we got up around seven
and then we had oatmeal before heading
out. We paddled six miles through a
mix of lake and river paddling. After
paddling all that way, we noticed that
the wind was blowing at our backs so we
put up our tent rain flies and sailed. We
sailed half the way to Horserace Rapids,
but we had to pull over because it started
thunderstorming. So we stopped at a
sketchy campsite and decided to just set
up camp there. We had a tasty dinner of
steak and cheese. It was a good day but
would have been better if it didn't rain.
Before bed, somebody caught a fish and
Bo decided to bite the head off of it.

-Malik Washington

Day 5

We woke today to bright sunlight and
serene water. Each camper chowed on
bagels and cream cheese and then quickly
loaded the boats. We were off. After about
a one-mile paddle, we entered Horserace
Rapids, infamous for their current which
moves against the boats. Soon, we had to
exit the boats and drag them up furious
rapids and slippery rocks. Malik, Dylan,
and Hemy A. all suffered injuries due
to the tumultuous waters, but we all
braved on until it was impossible to go
any further. A short, half-mile portage

followed and all were famished by the
end. Big PB&J sandwiches and Snickers
were for lunch, stuffing all stomachs.
We then took off again from a small dam
and battled headwinds for a while until
pulling into a small steam.

As the day waned, we paddled
through a magnificent rural area, with a
strange, quiet beauty. It was completely
uninhabited and immensity of the space
swallowed us. We witnessed a moose
up close and flocks of birds everywhere.
Finally, we paddled across Round Pond
to our campsite where we would be
resupplied tomorrow. Tents were set up
quickly and everyone joined in to search
for firewood for s 'mores while the sun
set. The sunset proved to be incredible.
Dinner was fettucini alfredo and with
the promise of S 'Mores later, morale was
quite high. Day 5 came to a close quietly,
but beautifully, just as the rest of the day
had been. -Will Kaback

Day 6

We woke up at nine-thirty today and
paddled over to our resupply. After
chillin' like villians, Reid pulled up in
his sick red truck. We loaded the canoes
into the back and took a ride over to a
mile-long portage that was waiting for us
and our heavy, refilled gear. We took the
canoes and gear down the path and then
we paddled to a campsite on Allagash
Lake called Edes. Bruce caught a small
mouth trout and we cooked it over the
fire. It was a sick day.

-Matt "Matty Ice" Baldwin

Day 7

We awoke today and realized that
our initial plan of "sunrising" Allagash
Mountain was no longer an option, as
the sun had already risen. However, after
everybody was awake and had enjoyed
a Clif Bar for breakfast, we packed up
and headed over to Allagash Mountain
anyway. After reaching the top, enjoying
the amazing view, and having a quick
snack, we came back down and headed
over to the Ice Caves. We were able
to sail almost the entire way over. We
enjoyed a grilled cheese lunch at the
Ice Caves campsite. After a long windy
paddle with some rapids, we arrived
at Little Allagash Falls, banged out a
quick portage and started making dinner.

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S'Mores were enjoyed before we all went
to bed. -Nicholas Gates Speranza

Days

Today we woke up at Little Allagash
Falls. It was pouring rain so we had a
quick breakfast (Nutri-Grain bars and
Pop Tarts) and quickly loaded our gear
into the boats. As we were preparing to
take off and begin the day's venture, we
ran into Long Voyage IL After talking
with them for a few minutes, we began
our paddle with two miles of rapids and
paddled into the notorious Chamberlain
Lake. The group battled headwinds and
hugged the shore for approximately 6-7
miles.

We landed at Gravel Beach at 4:30.
Allagash III was at the campsite already
and we spent the afternoon playing
Frisbee and swimming with them. We ate
sausage, pepper and rice for dinner. The
order for who ate first and for cleaning
crew was decided by the lottery. All of
the boys were worried that they were
going to be picked for cleaning. As soon
as the lottery was over, those who were
not chosen rejoiced. It was very funny
to watch. After dinner we watched an
amazing lightning show in the sky as
well as a beautiful sunset. It was truly
another memorable day at Camp Kieve.

-Bruce C. Haywood

Day 9

This morning the people of Long
Voyage 1 woke up to a slight, tiny
rainstorm. When we woke up and packed
up, we all waited while Jack Williams
and Ned Beckwith (HBC) made bacon,
egg and cheese on an English muffin.
After breakfast we flipped over the
canoes and headed on down. We paddled
down a few miles on Chamberlain Lake
and then a thunderstorm came out of
nowhere, so we had to pull off and climb
into the woods and we waited there for
approximately twenty minutes.

After the storm passed, we came out
of the woods and we continued to our
lunch spot Thoroughfare, where we had
sandwiches with turkey, roast beef, and
pepper jack cheese with mustard and
mayo. After lunch we kept on paddling
to our campsite, named "Field." Some
engaged in games of President before
heading off to sleep.

Day 10

LVI awoke at nine after a peaceful
night at Field Campsite. After a delicious
breakfast of bacon, egg and cheese with
ranch cooked by Neddy and Jack, we
headed over to Telos dam. Built in 1841,
the dam was even older than Bruce.
Anyways, the dam separates Telos Lake
and Webster Stream. Before we tried
our hand at the rapids, we portaged all
the group gear and boundary bags. It
was around a mile long and well-worth
the portage because we could shoot the
beast of a rapid with nothing else besides
ourselves in the boats.

After a Chex-Mix snack, we headed
downstream. Two out of eight boats
flipped, one carrying Jack and Zintl, the
other carrying Dylan and Bo. Only two
fishing poles were lost, one less than
three. The counselors rewarded us with
some crispy and buttery Lorna-Doones.
Swag. We paddled on to our campsite for
the night. Little Coffeelos. The boys ate
PB&H and then prepped for the rap battle
before dinner. Jules, Kaback, and Bruce
finished 1-2-3 respectively. Dinner was
delicious and after we all headed to bed
after great day. -Jules Cook

Day 11

This morning the kids of Long Voyage
I awoke to a very cold morning at Little
Coffeelos. After the kids packed up all
the tents and put away the group gear,
we all consumed Pop Tarts and cereal
bars. Once everyone was done with their
breakfast, we loaded up the canoes and
were off. After about a mile we stopped
and put on our rain jackets because it
looked like it was about to rain. After
everyone packed up again, we were out.

After five minutes of paddling we were
at Webster Brook. We started down the
beginning and everything was all good
until a five-foot drop rapid when all hell
broke loose. It was flip after flip and boats
and gear were everywhere. We all got
some cuts and bruises but were able to
laugh about it later. After the rapids and
a big portage with lots of trees in the way,
we were all dreading the lake paddling
we had before getting to the campsite.
Luckily, we sailed the entire lake and
arrived at Matagamon campground by
sundown. We set up a wonderful fire,

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cooked S'Mores and went to sleep.

-Jack Williams

Day 12

Day 12 of our trip opened as gloriously
as Day 11 had ended, with dry tents and
the sun on the horizon. The cabin had a
sleep-in as a reward for their hard work
the day before. When everyone awoke,
dry packs and tents were prepared
hastily, each camper a master at clearing
a campsite by this point. Dylan, Will, Bo
and Malik journeyed up the Matagamon
hill to the store, and Dylan purchased a
beautiful baby blue hat with a rainbow
trout craftfully stitched into the front.
Soon, the boys of LVI were off, and
quick rips of rapids and fast-moving
water greeted them. This allowed the
boys to chill out and converse with one
another, and the warm, sunny day added
to the relaxed ambiance felt by all. After
crushing the river paddling, we reached
the beginning of Haskell Rock, our first
of 2 and a half portages for this day.
Nick Speranza, Dylan, Ben, Zintl, Matt,
Constantin and Bo all soloed part, if not
all, of the .5-mile stretch.

After finishing the portage with ease,
a snack of peanut butter crackers was
devoured by the hungry cabin. After
Haskell Rock, the boys went through
some fun rips of Whitewater before
arriving at their next portage spot. Pond
Pitch. This was only a .3-mile path, so
Will and David, in addition to the others
from the last portage, threw up a canoe
and soloed. This portage also flew and a
hearty lunch of pep and cheese awaited
them at the end. Despite two portages
completed and the promise of another,
morale was high and the Whitewater
stretch to the final half portage. Grand
Pitch, was no issue.

The day's planned campsite was found
to be unexpectedly occupied by a Wavus
cabin, but this was no hindrance as LVI
simply stayed at a smaller campsite
down the trail. This portage carried on
the theme of its predecessors, quick
and simple. After the canoes, the boys
set up camp and hung out, swinging in
hammocks and playing cards. Soon, we
all went down to the base of the falls and
swam through the rapids and tubbed.
More card playing, reading, writing and

such followed until dinner time.

Will, Ben, Bo, Speranza, and Bruce all
helped dice pepperoni for spaghetti and
meat sauce. Dinner was quickly served
and squeals of delight carried up and
over the falls. Seconds only reinforced
the mood and all the troubles of the trip
and real world faded away, as thus seems
to happen at Kieve. The boys ended an
amazing day appropriately, around a big
fire bonding with each other. Stories of
trips past, school misadventures and
silly anecdotes filled the crisp night air,
wafting into the trees along with the
smoke from the flames. To the casual
onlooker, we would have appeared a
family. All was well. LLOK.

-Will Kaback

Day 13

The boys of LVI awoke to a crisp sun
shining into their tents. We had a "quick
but hearty breakfast" (-Reid Anderson)
of granola. After breakfast we loaded up
the canoes to head to the last portage that
we will do as campers at Kieve with the
sweltering sun at our backs. We arrived
at the portage trail, and all knew what to
do by this point in the trip, unloading the
boats and gear. The portage was not long
but the trail's condition made it brutal.
Since it had recently rained, the mud in
some areas was up to our shins. Not to
mention it was quite hilly and steep at
some points.

To celebrate our last portage of our
camper lives we had peanut butter
and jelly/honey sandwiches. We also
received a Snickers. After we put back
in and started our long relaxing day of
paddling. Talk of school life and food
was in the air along with many a bald
eagle. Some would fly high into the
air while others perched in trees. As
we neared a set of class .01 rapids, we
noticed a canoe horseshoed to a rock.
The women of Wavus appeared to have
ditched a canoe full of gear in the middle
of the river. Wags, Arcano, Consty,
Bruce, Bo and myself stepped up to the
challenge and were able to get the canoe
unstuck. Since we had a 9th canoe and
only enough people for 8, Jules paddled
by himself while K-Back was reassigned
to share a boat with Dave. Arcano took
the Wavus canoe under his wing. Only

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100 yards after those same rapids we
found Wavus. We gave them their stuff
back (OMG thank you so much) and
continued on our journey. The rest of
the day was filled with more talking,
tanning, and bald eagle sighting. We
arrived at our campsite at dusk and had
a hearty and filling dinner of beef stew
and egg noodles. Since the day was long
and exhausting, the boys of LV I went
right to bed after dinner. Talk in the tents
continued long into the night. LLOK.

-Ben Fox

Day 14

Alsnirautu achtenua duusere Zelteein
pakten, uber raschte unseinle alte raber
nichtstauter Regen der sichs paterleider,
alsunsevstandiger. Beglectev herau
sstellte. Wir hatter ein schnelle suber
trotz dem full endes fruhstuck. Hir
ben Poptarts und einportein. Unsere
counselor gabenuns all unsevre snacks
annorgen neil nirauser 15 neilen Rudern
scnell hunter uns bringen nollten. Die
Kalfe nachte uusalle zaschattendesugen
gab eseinen goben Auf scheralsnir
Grindstone rapids erreichten den das
bedeutete, das snirnehals die Halfe der
strecht hinter hatten. Frotz des Regen
snassten niralle roll leonzaenti. Nach
Grindstone rapids verging die Reisenie.
Rest von Peanut Butter, nirhatten hock
so vielubrig das niemond.

-Constantin Scheibler

Day 15

The boys woke up to a rainy day;
but the spirits in the cabin would not
be dampened on a day like this. That's
because this was the day of the long-
awaited resupply. As the unmistakable
shade of orange pulled up in the form
of a bus full of Allagash campers, LVI
screamed with delight. Reid and Henry
Kennedy provided helping hands and
familiar faces as boats were loaded and
packages distributed. Zintl's Clif Bars
and Jules' fruit snacks proved to be both
good and bad difference makers in the
not-too-distant future.

After the group packed all their things
and said final farewells, the last leg of the
trip was officially underway. With Arcano
blasting mad beats in the driver's seat, the
boys headed to Baxter State Park's not-

so-famous campsite, Nesowadnehunk
Group Area. In the spirit of Old Kieve,
grilled cheese and tomato soup were
enjoyed by all. It was sick.

Rain kept us in the lean- 2 for the
afternoon where we all got to know each
other a bit better. Foxy and his crew
played President while Matty, Ice and
Malik were up to their shenanigans as
always. Wags and Neddy made a killer
pizza dinner to prep everyone for the
following day's hikes. Seven campers
packed their bags for a Mt. Katahdin
sunrise attempt. Everyone went to sleep
full and happy and a feeling of excitement
filled the crisp night air in anticipation
for the hikes. Tag us in, swag us out,
another wonderful day was in the books
for the boys of LVI. -Jules "Juicy J" Cook
Day 16

To call 2 AM the start of a "day" could
be considered untruthful. At this ungodly
hour, seven brave boys (Will, Jules, Bo,
Ben, Sam, Bruce and Constantin), with
Ned Beckwith and Henry Wagner, donned
headlamps and fleeces in preparation for
a sunrise hike of Mount Katahdin. This
behemoth of a mountain, the tallest in
Maine, stared down at us menacingly
in the blanketing darkness of the early
morning. The hike began.

A determined silence overcame us
all as we rapidly covered terrain. The
thin stream of light from headlamps
(or torches as Constantin likes to call
them) was all that separated us from
pure darkness. As the tree line thinned,
we noticed the stars above us, sprinkled
throughout the sky like chocolate chips
in a pancake. They shone brightly and
ferociously, as if trying to get the most
visibility out of the remaining night.
Despite their beauty, we would have to
keep moving if we wanted to watch the
sunrise from Katahdin's summit. Soon, a
huge stretch of boulders and foliage, at a
near 90-degree angle. The winds sped up
considerably, causing some of us to cling
to rock faces, frozen with fear.

This stretch of the hike went on for
what seemed like forever, but our pace
was forced to quicken once again as the
sun began to peek around the side of the
mountain. We reached a plateau where a
sign informed us that we were a mere mile

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from the top. The winds were hostile, we
insinuated that they were around 40-45
MPH. Luckily, the remaining mile was
relatively flat and we booked it to the
peak. About 200 yards from the end, the
sun broke through and illuminated the
entire mountain gloriously. We broke
into a full-on sprint. The view from
Katahdin's summit was, in Ned's words,
"like Heaven." Ponds without ripple
and pristine treetops seemed to glow.
We forgot the freezing cold winds and
aching legs to bask in the glory of it all.
Crouching behind a boulder, a bag of beef
jerky was passed around, a hearty reward
for our 2-hour sprint to the top.

However, chill soon set in and we
were forced to snap out of our haze of
accomplishment. The hike down was
quick and uneventful. We returned to
our Baxter campground with a legendary
swagger about us, still absorbing what
had just done. The other campers were
about to embark on their own journey,
a hike of the slightly less majestic Owl
Mountain. The late morning and early
afternoon were spent lounging and
loafing, idle chitchat and easy going
humor punctuating the time.

When the rest of the cabin returned,
we shared stories of our hikes, describing
the trials and tribulations in equal
amount. A fire was made. BBQ burgers
with copious amounts of lettuce, tomato,
onion, avocado, and hand cut fries were
devoured. The sun set as it had risen,
with breath-taking beauty worthy of a
Screensaver. Fatigue set in for all, the
product of an exhilarating but exhausting
day. A dry tent and warm sleeping bag
sounded better than a 5 -star hotel and we
soon climbed in and fell asleep. It was a
day of Kieve legend for all, the kind that
defines this place for what it is. Courage,
perseverance, and loyalty were on full
display on this day and the men of Long
Voyage I proved themselves to be the
stuff of camp lore. If any day was to be
described as good, today would be that
day. -Will Kaback

Day 17

I'm back. It's Ned. We ran out of paper
for the trip notes so I am going to briefly
describe the last two days of our amazing
trip. On Day 17, we checked out the Big

and Little Niagara Falls in Baxter before
driving over to Northern Outdoors and
setting up camp. We had a barn burner
of a spelling bee to figure out the order
for eating dinner, and crushed our fajitas
and cleaned up before hanging out by
the fire. We did some highs and lows of
the trip together, and then got an early
night because of the early wake-up
time required to go Whitewater rafting.
Excitement was palpable in the tents as
we all got mentally prepared for the final
adventure of our voyage.
Day 18

Whitewater rafting got a little weird.
It started out like any conventional
rafting trip would, with nervous/excited
participants going down the Class V rapids
called Exterminator and Cribworks. Then
Bo tried to "pull the trigger" for Dylan
and was caught on camera. Truly strange
stuff. We all had a blast though, and
laughed and reminisced while watching
the rafting video in the lodge.

Then it was time to head back to Kieve
but not before a stop self-proclaimed
"Maine's favorite deli" Big G's. Massive
sandwiches were devoured by all and
then it was time to finally arrive back
at the end of West Neck Road. It was an
honor and a privilege to experience such
an intrepid trip with you boys. I miss you
all already, and would do anything to be
back on the trip.

Long Voyage II
The Long Voyage
Tyler Hill, HBC

Warning: What follows is an abridged
first-hand account of the goings-on
during the second session Long Voyage
II trip during the summer of 2013.
Each member of that fateful group was
assigned a day to document and what
follows is their own written account. A
special thanks is due to those who wrote
more than one entry and to those who
helped translate especially cramped or
water logged handwriting.

The views and statements expressed in
the Trip Notes do not necessarily reflect
the views of Tyler McKee Ltd. and any
other person involved in the making
and distribution of the Trip Notes do

295

not warrant the accuracy, reliability,
currency or completeness of those views
or statements and do not accept any legal
liability whatsoever arising from any
reliance on the views, statements and
subject matter of the Notes. You've been
warned.

Day 1 (The Prince)

We embarked on oin: journey at 10 a.m.
with The One at the helm as we steered
for greener pastures. After a quick stop at
Wal-Mart for lunch and a few last minute
supplies and lunch (mildly frozen deli
meat sandwiches), we headed deep into
the Maine woods where we were dropped
off at Moosehead Lake. We set up camp
and began to cook barbeque chicken. We
ate heartily, knowing there was a long
trip ahead of us. The night came to an
early close with the promise of an early
start the next day.
Day 2 (Snow White)

Today we woke up at 5:00. We had
a ten-mile day ahead of us. We had no
winds on Moosehead Lake, but when
we got to the campsite, we had tail
winds hitting our camp. For lunch we
melted cheese on our turkey or ham
sandwiches. We had cheeseburgers for
dinner. Afterwards we sat on a rock and
talked about things. We went to bed early
because we had a big day tomorrow.
Day 3 (Cinderella)

Today we woke up at 7:00 and ate
granola with soy milk. Then we packed
up and left to get to the North East Carry.
We started around 9:30. Both of the
counselors soloed canoes. Jake, Matt,
and Ben also soloed canoes. We finished
the North East Carry in about 3 hours
and had rocket fuel to re-energize us to
walk all the way to the end again with
the rest of our stuff and group gear. As
a reward we got a can of soda, drinking
it as we floated down the river. We got
to the campsite (Olouette) and had to
set up fast, because rain was coming. It
drizzled while Tyler was making chicken
alfredo. After dinner we made a fire and
had Marshmallows/S 'mores
Day 4 (Aurora)

Today we woke up at 9:30 to alot of rain.
Luckily it stopped and we had Pop-Tarts
before we headed out. We paddled along
the West branch of the Penobscot which

eventually opened up into Chesuncook
Lake where we stopped for fudge and
root beer. At Chesuncook village we had
tuna fish for lunch.

When we left Chesuncook Village, we
had about 3 miles until our campsite.
When we got to the campsite we set
up camp and went swimming. After
swimming we started to prepare dinner.
For dinner we had rice and beans. After
dinner we sat around the campfire and
told scary stories.
Day 5 (Ariel)

The cabin woke up at 7:30 and quickly
celebrated Matt and Jake's B-Day with
sausage/bacon and egg scramble. The
cabin set out at a brisk pace. The savage
headwinds delayed us getting to The
Horse Races. The Horse Races were brutal.
It was like walking through molasses. We
had a very tiring paddle after that to the
campsite where we would receive our
resupply the next day.
Day 6 (Belle)

Today, at 9:00, we woke up and had
granola, graham crackers, and Nutrigrain
bars. While we waited for our resupply,
we saw a bear cub on the road. The
first time it quickly left as a car came
by. About an hour later, the bear came
back. Both times, the bear was about 50
feet away. For most of us it was our first
bear sighting. At around 11:30, Walter
showed up with our resupply. We first
opened mail, then we loaded up Walter's
pickup with canoes and gear and drove
3.5 miles to the entrance of the Allagash
Wilderness Waterway. We had cold cuts
and soda from Walter for lunch and then
portaged our gear the last mile from
Allagash Lake. After talking to the ranger,
we set up camp. For dinner we had Philly
cheesesteaks and then finished that off
with roasted bananas.
Day 7 (Jasmine)

Today we woke up bright and early
at around 6:00 and we were greeted by
the sound of rain on our tents. We all
reluctantly got up. Timmy was kind
enough to help Clayton wake up by
politely asking him. We all had breakfast
sandwiches and loaded the boats quicker
than ever. We paddled in the pouring
rain to the ice caves, which served as
good shelter from the rain.

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We then continued to paddle out of
Allagash Lake and said goodbye to our
ranger friend. We then went to Allagash
Stream and all had fun dodging rocks
in the fast water. When we got to little
Allagash Falls and quickly portaged all
our stuff to the campsite below at around
12:00. We were surprised to see that the
campsite was still being occupied by LV
I, who left after seeing us. No sooner did
we get settled in than did the rain stop
and the sun shone down on us. We had
hot cuts for lunch and afterwards laid
around playing music and drying off.
When we were dry, we decided to go
swimming at the base of the falls, and
had fun swimming in circles. We ended
the day with some crunch wraps and fell
asleep to the amazing sound of the Falls.
Day 8 (Pocahontas)

Today was an extra special day. Twas
the day of the mongoose, or whatever.
We woke up to the sounds of crazy
wildlife and Allagash Falls as well as
some new rainclouds. The great gods fed
us the daintiest of toast d'Francois, we
like to live rough on trips... After rains
that could quench a drought, we pulled
out onto Allagash Stream which was
indeed a dark horse, one could say. The
Voyage II hogs hit some killer rips with a
few drops that could boggle a Scotsman's
mind. The moving water halted and soon
we were on Chamberlain Lake, a familiar
sight to all. We pulled over so Tyler could
go bird watching and to construct a sail.
We cranked it for a good 100 yards then
the winds died down. We paddled like
Vikings in war formation towards our
campsite, Gravel Beach. We took a quick
dip in the healthy water of the Allagash
Wilderness Waterway and dined on
mellow chicken bacon ranch burgers,
fit for kings of old. By the fire now with
Daj^a jammin'.
Day 9 (Mulan)

It was a warm morning today. We woke
up at the crack of dawn, an early 10 AM.
After taking down the only shelter that I
have known for a week, my tent, we ate
B-fast. It was eggs and peppers, bacon
and toast. We saw some wondering
travelers but they left soon. We prepared
our vessels and set sail... on canoes. We
paddled and it was chill and stuff. We

297

saw some Boy Scouts and they were
aiight. Then we got to this bridge and ate
lunch this was around 1:30 but keep in
mind that we ate breakfast 90 mins ago.

We met another nice family while we
ate lunch. We went again and noticed
some rain, the first campsite we went to
had a person and some excited dogs. We
headed further and found a chill campsite
we set up camp and hung out. We had
pizzas for dinner, they were aiight. Life
goes on and the world turns but I learned
from everything... it's ok.
Day 10 (Tiana)

Today was a short but memorable.
It started off with a 9:30 wakeup with
breakfast samwiches for breakfast. After
that we continued down the lake of
Telos to Telos Cut Rapids which were
quite intense and fun! We arrived at our
campsite at around 12:40 and relaxed
for the rest of the evening. Dinner was
an Asian rice and chicken mix. Early
bedtime for a long day tomorrow.
Day 11 (Rapunzel)

Today we woke up at 4:30 to begin our
20-mile trek. We had bagels and cream
cheese for breakfast and packed up fast
so we could get on the water. We paddled
on Webster Lake for a short period of time
before we hit Webster Brook (the hardest
rapids Kieve does). Webster Brook was
challenging but we pushed through
and with teamwork and determination
everyone came out safe and happy, some
would say it went swimmingly.

After the rapids we pulled out and
portaged around Grand Pitch. The
portage was about 3/4 of a mile and the
group did a very good job and we got it
done. We put in at the end of the portage
trail and paddled into Grand Lake
Matagamon. We stopped on the lake and
ate lunch, huge PB&J sandwiches. After
lunch we continued paddlin' to our
campsite. We arrived at the portage, our
second of the day, tired and wanting to
be at our campsite. The portage was short
so we killed it. We put our boats back in
the water and paddled a 1/2 mile to our
campsite. We arrived, having done 20+
miles and only tipped a couple of boats.
We had burritos for dinner and talked by
the fire until the sun went down.

Day 12 (Tiana)

We woke up to a very calm and relaxing
day. The sun was bright and the paddling
was chill. The current carried the boys
and me to a really nice swimming hole
after which we continued to our first
portage. The portage was short and easy,
after we continued to our campsite and
portaged the boats around the waterfall.
The boys made dinner while the
counselors played in the water.
Day 13 (Rapunzel)

We woke up late today because it was
raining. When it stopped, we ate Cheerios
Bars for breakfast. We took down camp
and portaged our gear to our boats. We got
on the river and, not but a mile down the
river, we approached our second portage
of the day Grand Pitch. We portaged over
Grand Pitch and continued our day and
not but a mile down the river, we came
across our last portage as Kieve campers.
We crushed it. Hulling Machine was no
match for Long Voyage II. We got back
on the river and got ready to tackle our
22-mile day. We paddled through the
mist, rain, and the fog and made it to our
campsite. We set up camp and ate Dank.
Day 14 (Prince Charming)

Having completed the last portage
of their tenures as Kieve campers, the
men of Long Voyage Dos rose late on the
terminus of their second week primed
for an exciting day. After a brief brunch
of PB&J's, during which I got to watch
our own David Dayya scarf down 8
sandwiches, we loaded up the boats and
set off, paddling with the steady rhythm of
the light rain pattering against the waters
of the Penobscot. The first two hours of
our paddle were fairly uneventful. As we
progressed, homes began to appear along
the river's edge, and in the distance we
heard the rumble of cars bouncing down
Grindstone Road. Eventually we reached
the Grindstone picnic area, where we
encountered the boys of Bank finishing
up their lunch and preparing to shoot
Grindstone Falls, a portion of Whitewater
with a very grisly reputation.

A short bathroom break later, the
boys and I loaded up our own canoes
and paddled furiously into the roaring
waters beneath us. We conquered the
first ledge without any significant

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error, and confidently moved towards
the second, more violent ledge. My
bowman Matt and I headed the charge
into the monstrous rooster tail, where
our defiance was silenced by a boatful of
water and an imposing rock. Fate varied
from boat to boat, however, the craft
sterned by Billy and powered by Tim met
with a particularly unfortunate demise.
Following an early flip, Billy was swept
downriver (safely), escorting our bread
wan, while Tim managed to eddy out
and witness firsthand his boat getting
pinned and crushed between the current
and a boulder. Tyler managed to get up
to where Tim was standing on the shore
and proceeded to struggle out against the
trapped boat and free it.

The group reconvened a hundred
yards down river. Billy and Tim's boat
now sported a two and a half foot gash
right down the middle towards the bow.
This, of course, entailed me paddling
the boat through the remainder of the
Whitewater and through 3 miles of river,
sitting on the stern so to keep the bow
and the hole out of the water. The only
group which managed to survive all of
the rapids without flipping was Peter
Cooke, and Nick Baker.

We arrived at Pine Grove in high
spirits. The paddling portion of our trip
was over. Off to Baxter State Park we go!
Day 15 (Pocahontas)

We woke up to what was our first day
in a while where we saw the elusive
sun. We dined on corned beef hash and
oatmeal. The men of LVII chilled and
waited for our resupply, which was
great. We read mail and gathered much-
loved snack bags. Tyler drove safely to
our Baxter campsite where we chilled
until we hit the sack after a delicious
meal of Italian sausage cooked by master
chef Sammy Denby... A good day in the
hood of Maine.
Day 16 (The Prince)

We started our first full day in Baxter
at a leisurely pace. We entrusted the
boys with cooking the pancakes, all 40
some odd servings. Billy Dietz, and
Sous Chef Peter Cooke prepared what
I'm sure will one day be world-famous
Pam-Cake Balls, pancakes of such
gargantuan size that they were unable to

be flipped and were scrambled instead.
The Pam-Cake Balls were engorged with
Oreos, M&Ms, Hershey's chocolate and
Snickers. This deadly combination made
consuming multiple 3 lb. monstrosities
unfathomable. After a 5-hour pancaking
session, we decided the only way to
properly digest the food was to swim
down some slippery natural water slides
which we did for a few hours until the
boys again grew hungry, at which point
we feasted upon Bronson Burgers, and
called it a night after discussing some of
our aspirations.
Day 17 (Jasmine)

We all had a great night's sleep even
though we woke up at 1:00 because our
neighbor was loud. We went back to
sleep and woke up at 8:00. After breakfast
sandwiches we packed up camp and
drove to the base of the Appalachian
Trail. We hiked and saw Little Niagara
Falls and then continued up to Big
Niagara Falls. While we were there we
swam around and got an interesting
perspective on the waterfall. We then
had cheesy tortilla quesadillas on a rock
on the side of the falls.

The hike back to the van completed
oiu- hike. We then drove to the rafting
campsite where we settled in and had
Dank for dinner. We then sat around the
fire before bed, excited for our final day
on the trip: Rafting.
Day 18 (The Prince)

We woke up early and packed up our
campsite for the final time, ate Pop-Tarts
and proceeded to the lodge to begin our
East Branch of the Penobscot rafting
extravaganza. The river was a blast.
The surfs were everyone's favorite part.
We drove home, stopping at Wendy's to
feast. The trip came to a close minutes
from becoming a 19-day trip and the boys
cleaned up fast and moved in to our new
cabin to crash exhausted into bed.

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Maine Trails I
Will Hackett, HBC

Day 1: Will Hackett

Today was no ordinary day for the
men of Maine Trails One, as we awoke
from a deep sleep in Buck and headed
to breakfast, our minds were clouded
with thoughts of adventure. Today was
the day we were leaving for Maine Trails.
After breakfast the boys began carrying
all of our gear down to the waterfront
and loading the boats. Once all the boats
were loaded, we pushed off the shores of
Kieve and paddled off into the distance,
saying goodbye to our fellow campers
and staff members.

We paddled about 5 miles to the end
of the lake where we were then picked
up and transferred to Bremen. Once
at Bremen we noticed the weather was
looking a little unruly and decided that
we would make a short paddle out to
Crow Island just off the shore in the bay.
We quickly arrived at Crow and began
to set up camp. Once everything was set
up, James Lawton fired up the stove and
cooked everyone some delicious cheese
steaks. Once dinner was over, we had a
nice fire below the tide line, and talked
about the days to come. Soon after we all
headed to our tents, in order to be well
rested for our last wild adventure.
Day 2: Griffin Hall

Today we woke at 9 and had a relaxing
morning with sausage, bacon, egg and
cheese sandwiches. It was not the best
day weatherwise with rough winds, light
rain, and choppy waters. At about 11 we
headed out of Crow Island and got the idea
to try to sail. Our sail was well-executed
except for the fact that we would have
been going faster without the sail. Ike
and Avery were non-believers of the sail
and broke off to paddle themselves. Hal,
James, Francesco, Eddie, Trevor, and I
were very optimistic about sailing, but
eventually we realized it wasn't working
and ditched the idea. The waters were
rough and hard to deal with, especially
while crossing from Indian Island to
Thief Island, our campsite for the night.
The water was extremely choppy and
treacherous, making our arrival at the
campsite amazing. The campsite was ok

compared to others, however; we played
cards and talked after a quick lunch of
pep and cheese. After a few more card
games and some reminiscing, James,
Francesco, Ike, Hal, and I cooked some
DANK, as Hackett describes it as cheesy
Mac and cheese with some bacon. We all
went to bed pretty quickly after dinner,
because we had an early morning the
next day.

Day 3: Avery Weiss

We started the morning by getting up
around 5:30 and saw the sun on its way
up. We were so excited when we saw
that it was going to be a beautiful day.
The sky was clear and we were ready to
go. We ate a quick breakfast of Pop Tarts
and multigrain bars. The tide was very
low that morning so we had some hairy
entrances into the water but we all made
it down off the rocks safe and sound.
We took a quick paddle to the east side
of Hog Island and pulled up on a nice,
sandy beach. We decided to take a little
hike on the island to try to get to Hog
Island Ryan's house on the north side of
the island. We took a little bit of a detour
of the path and ended up taking a long
but nice hike along the edge of the beach.
We eventually got to the house after the
beautiful walk on the beach and we met
Ryan. We took an icy swim in the ocean
of his dock and then relaxed for a while
on Ryan's lawn. Ryan then introduced
us to an amazing race style game. It
was a ton of fun and took up the whole
afternoon. We trekked through the woods
and picked up as much trash as we could
find. By the time we got back, Ryan had
prepared us a special dinner: lobster! We
ate mussels and chips as an appetizer and
then dug into some fresh Maine lobster.
After dinner we had a delicious dessert
of Tasty Kakes, ice cream, and pie. We
were so stuffed! After that we said our
thank yous and set out to our camp on
the other side of the island. When we got
back, we built a fire and listened to Max
play harmonica. It was a great ending to
a great day.
Day 4: Eddie Fischer

Today we woke up at Hog Island to
a very foggy morning, and were very
disappointed, and worried that we might
not be able to leave. However, when the

300

fog started to clear about an hour later,
we decided to make a break for it. After
a delicious breakfast of M&M pancakes,
made by Trevor, we packed up the boats
and headed out. We had a relatively long
paddle to Otter Island, most of which was
a long crossing. We hit a brief rainstorm,
but quickly paddled through it. After
about an hour and a half we made it to
Otter Island.

After unpacking the boats and setting
up camp we made a delicious lunch
of pasta with Italian Parmesan cheese
provided by Francesco. The rest of the
day we just hung out sitting around
and talking, playing cards or just taking
a nap. Later we got ready for dinner,
we had pasta again, this time with
pesto. However, when dinner was over,
since we were all still hungry, and had
leftover food the day before a resupply,
we decided to make grilled cheese
sandwiches for dessert. Some people
made triple, or even quadruple (in Hal's
case) decker sandwiches, which looked
awesome. After our grilled cheeses we
cleaned up and collected firewood. Then
we had a great campfire that lasted a
long time. All in all, despite the weather
limitations it was a good day. Griffin
wants to be mentioned, and Ike says hi.
Day 5: Hal Marshall

Today we woke up on Otter Island to
a breakfast of oatmeal. We loaded up the
boats and prepared for our short paddle to
Friendship, where we were to meet T.J. for
our resupply and transfer to Stonington.
Unfortunately our short paddle was
disrupted by fog and we became slightly
disoriented before recovering our
bearings and reaching our destination
in the harbor of Friendship. We swiftly
loaded the kayaks onto the trailer, and
headed off towards Stonington.

While in the van we enjoyed letters sent
by family and friends. To accompany the
desserts we received in the mail, we also
stopped along the way for more snacks.
We reached the Stonington put-in with
full stomachs, despite the fact that lunch
hadn't been served yet. We all unloaded
the van, ate a small lunch, and made the
very short paddle to Rock Island. The
owner of the island, Mr. Rock, who was
staying on the island too, greeted us. He

warmly welcomed us and showed us to
our campsite. Shortly after, we began
cooking dinner (cheesesteaks) while
James prepared a fire. When dinner
was finished, we sat around the fire and
talked until we were ready to go to sleep.
Things were good.
Day 6: Francesco Merlo Pich

Today the guys of Maine Trails I
woke up at 8.00 a.m. at Rock Island. We
quickly packed our gear in the 7 kayaks
as usual. I decided to guide the group to
our new destination. I observed the map
of Maine's coasts. Max showed me where
we were supposed to go: Kimball Island.
We had to pass George Head Island and
Merchant Island. I was sure that the
trip would have taken only two hours.
James and I were paddling at a steady
speed near Eddie and Trevor's kayak.
We were enjoying flipping their rudder.
After one attempt, they began to chase
us. Our kayak got extremely unbalanced,
until, the huge water container that we
were carrying, shifted on the left side of
the kayak. We capsized. The water was
freezing, 65 f. We managed to get on our
kayak and to pump out the salty water.
We could not believe what happened.
At 11.00 am we reached our destination.
Kimball's Island campsite had a big beach
and a small cliff where we could watch
the sunset. For all the rest of the day, we
read books, played cards and had a good
time. For dinner we had Boboli pizza. In
was amazing!!!

Day 7: Trevor 'T-DOG' Dorman

Today the boys of Maine Trails I
conquered Isle Au Haut. We were woken
up around 4:00 in the morning; we got
our things together and paddled out to
watch the sunrise. For many of us it was
our first time watching the sunrise, and
after a great sunset the previous night,
we were all awed by how beautiful it
could be. The rest of the paddling was
quite the experience. After making it
further around the island, we stopped
at a small beach for a bathroom break,
and to prepare for an especially wild
part of the paddle. As we were leaving,
Francesco and James were surprised by a
rogue wave, and flipped their boat again!
Luckily, the weather was great and they
were dry in no time.

301

Soon after, we spotted some slippery
seals skidding into the water. We came
close and watched as they flopped off
their rocks and into the Maine ocean. By
that point, we were all quite tired, but
we persevered and made it back to camp,
concluding our 6-hour paddle. That was
enough to quench some of the boy' thirst
for adventure though, and we paddled
to some nearby docks to jump off this
big structure. After that the day was
filled with cards, naps and talks about
everything from restaurants back home,
to how we got to school. To wrap it all up,
we enjoyed delicious pizzas made by our
very own master Italian chef Francesco.
Overall, a terrific day.
Day 8: Hay den Mckee

We awoke on the eighth day of our
adventure, well-rested from the previous
day's excitement. We had bagels and
cream cheese for breakfast and departed
our campsite on Kimball Island in search
of that day's destination. Rock Island,
which we had visited previously. Despite
the early morning fog, the twelve of us
arrived on Rock shortly. Upon arrival,
we unpacked our boats and set up our
tents. We then ventured into the town
of Stonington in pursuit of ice cream
and several other such snacks. Once we
found them we settled down in a small
park, enjoyed our food, and gazed out
upon the best view Stonington has to
offer.

We returned to Rock Island and set out
to use the fine cheese we had acquired
in Stonington, crafting up Tuna Melts
which could satisfy the appetite of all but
the hungriest of kayakers. Being careful
not to waste a day on constant sunlight,
which was starting to be all too rare, we
proceeded to lounge around on the beach
for quite some time, with some choosing
to swim and some simply enjoying the
view of the bay.

After a few hours of relaxation and
recovery, the cabin addressed the growing
need for both food and firewood. A select
few campers were chosen to prepare
that night's dinner of pesto pasta and
bacon, while the rest acquired enough
wood to keep a fire going for hours. After
enjoying our meal out on the beach, we
slowly gathered as James built us a fire

that would keep us talking long into the
night, ending one of the last but certainly
not least awesome days of this section.
Day 9: James Lawton

This morning we took our time rising
from our tents, and found that our home
base of Rock Island was engulfed in fog,
with a slight drizzle misting around us.
As soon as everyone had made their
way out of their tents, we all enjoyed
a nice batch of handcrafted Milky Way
and M&M pancakes. We had plenty of
mix and ended up making pancakes into
the early afternoon, deciding to take full
advantage of the time we had on our rest
day. Throughout the day people played
every card game in the book, including;
Egyptian Rat Screw, black jack. President,
and kemps. After a while a few of us got
restless so Hayden, Max, and I went out
on the beach to throw the Frisbee. After
a while the rest of the cabin came out,
and Max taught us a great game that was
called "Star Wars." We split into 2 teams,
and established 2 bases. Each team had
a captain with a certain number of lives,
and his commander had unlimited lives.
The first team to take all of the opposing
team's captains lives won. A life is taken
by hitting an opponent anywhere on
their body with a rolled up shirt as a
sword. We played the game or various
renditions of it for the next few hours,
and a few lucky souls bathed in the glory
of victory. What a great afternoon!

After some more down time, and
relaxation, a beef stew that rivaled any
recipe I have ever tasted was artfully
crafted by Eddie and Avery. We enjoyed
our stew on the beach, and cleaned our
bowls with some bread. Afterwards
Griffin and Hal did a killer clean-up job.
We then now retired to our tents, winding
down after another day in paradise.
Day 10: Ike Lanier

Today we woke up with the sun shining
through our tents which is always a
fantastic thing. Today was our last day on
the ocean and would also be our first day
of hiking the AT. After we woke up, we
packed up our things and ate a good meal
of oatmeal. We then took a short paddle
from Rock to Stonington. We were all
excited to see the One's orange bus when
we pulled up. After loading our boats, we

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set off for Monson, which is the starting
point for the 100-mile Wilderness. We
drove while listening to music, reading
mail, and eating delicious brownies. We
stopped at Subway for lunch in Bangor,
and then made our way to Monson. We
were all excited to start hiking the trail;
we couldn't wait to arrive in Monson.

After listening to more music and
listening to One's amazing stories, we
quickly arrived in Monson. We then
loaded everything into our packs quickly,
due to the fear of heavy rain. After taking
pictures before our long journey and
saying goodbye to the One, we set off on
our trip. We quickly read the warning
sign telling hikers not to enter the trail
without sufficient supplies. After a
short three-mile hike, we arrived at our
campsite and ate cheesesteaks for dinner.
We then went to bed thinking about the
amazing days that would soon follow.
Day 11: Ash

We woke up around 7 am this morning
for our first day on the trail. We left our
campsite around 10 am, and hiked a long
7.6 miles to the Wilson Valley lean-to.
Hal, Griffin, Max, and Avery arrived 2
hours earlier than the rest of us, but by
4 pm everyone in Maine Trails I had
arrived safely. Everyone had some sort
of aches or foot problems at this point
and we were completely exhausted from
the hike. We all enjoyed a lunch of tuna
sandwiches. That night, James and Avery
prepared a dinner of bacon cheeseburgers.
We turned in early after the long day to
prepare for our next adventures.
Day 12- Griffin

Today we woke up at 5:45 and knew
we had a long day ahead. We were all
still aching from yesterday and hoped for
the best. The day before, we had received
our trail names and were to only respond
to them. We had bagels and cream cheese
for breakfast and started on the trail.
The hiking order developed with Max
leading the pack, followed close behind
by Dobby and Myrtle. Samwise, Quasi,
Stonewall, Guadalupe, Rainman, Taz,
and Dufresne rounded out our order. We
took a break at Long Pond and waited for
everyone to catch up.

Once we were all mentally prepared
for the dreaded Barren Mt., we threw on

our packs and kept moving. Barren Mt. is
basically straight up for a good two miles
then flattens out to an amazing lookout
where we stopped and saw an amazing
view. After a couple of minutes of
relaxation, we threw our packs back on
and we went off to the summit. Another
steep climb revealed the amazing view
and an abandoned metal tower that
offered a panoramic lookout point onto
the lakes and forests below.

After a long break on the windy
summit, we walked down to Cloud Pond
to discover Wavus. Luckily we were
still able to find room and went to work
making PB&J. After a quick bath in Cloud
Pond, master chefs Quasi and Dufresne
went to work making the piping hot beef
stew without any trouble from the stove.
We got in our tents and called it a night.
Day 13: Avery

The wind was blowing and the air was
cold at 6 am when Max woke us up. We
had a breakfast of Pop Tarts and Nutri
bars. Alpha team rolled out and began the
day that would see the summit of three
peaks. It was a steep but short climb over
the 34 false peaks to the top of Fourth Mt.
We took a nice break on top and waited
for the rest of the group. It was a beautiful
day and we could see Whitecap off in the
distance. We set off again and trekked up
Third Mountain. On the way. Max, Ike,
Hal, Grif and I came across a huge field of
blueberries, which we happily ate. Our
last mountain of the day was Columbus,
which we trucked up.

We got to the Chairback Gap campsite
around noon. We had PB&J and chilled
for the rest of the afternoon. We played
cards, slept, and read. Finally, we had
dinner at 6. We had to finish off the
bacon that night to prevent it from going
bad, so our Dank was absolutely filled.
It was delicious! We all had our fill and
then went to sleep, excited for day 14.
Day 14- Eddie

Today we had a delicious breakfast of
oatmeal and hit the trail from Chairback
Gap at around 7:30. We had a long day
ahead of us, about 11 miles, but we were
all ready to take off. First we conquered
a short uphill to the summit of Chairback
Mt. We then had a long downhill to the
West Branch of the Pleasant River. Once

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we got there we took our boots off and
crossed it. After crossing the river we
hiked for about another mile before
catching Alpha Team at Gulf Hagas.
It was a perfect spot for a swim, so we
all took a quick dip and decided to eat
lunch there.

After eating our tuna sandwiches
we packed up our packs and hit the
trail again. We had about four miles of
a gradual uphill to complete before we
got to the lean-to. Once we got there, we
all chilled for a while and played cards,
napped, or talked. That night we had
beef stew with quinoa for dinner, which
was delicious and very filling. It was a
great day of hiking and we all went to
bed tired and sore, but happy.
Day 15- Hal

This morning we woke up to a slight
drizzle and were rushed out of our tents
at 5 am. We ate a quick breakfast of Pop
Tarts and Nutris and sped off onto the
trail. Dufresne led the way over our first
mountain of the day: Gulf Hagas. As the
elevation rose, the weather took a turn
for the worse. Despite the wind and the
rain, we proceeded onward over the next
two mountains — West Peak and Hay Mt.

We finally reached out biggest test of
the day as we approached the base of
White Cap, our fourth and final mountain
of the day. We headed up to the summit
and the wind and rain picked up even
more. When we finally reached the peak,
3,700 ft. above sea level, the wind was
enough to push you around. We stopped
for a quick picture and quickly ran to the
safety of tree line on the far side of the
summit. We made an easy 6-mile hike to
our campsite at the East Branch lean-to.
We rolled into camp a little past noon
as the skies cleared for an afternoon of
pep and cheese and chillin'. That night
we enjoyed pesto prepared by Chef
StoniBwall. Things were good.
Day 16 - James "Stonewall" Lawton

This morning we awoke to a bit of rain
and an oncoming storm. We broke down
our tents faster than ever in an attempt
to win a race against time as distant
thunder sounded. We all made it under
the lean-to just in time when it started
really pouring. We ate a quick oatmeal
breakfast before packing up. It looked

like things were clearing up, but Mother
Nature had other plans. As soon as we
left, it poured harder and the thunder got
louder. But the men of MT I pushed on.
Paths turned into streams and dry areas
turned into bogs. We made quick work of
Little Boardman Mountain and were up
and down in no time.

Once we conquered Little Boardman,
hiking became flat again and the rain
eased off. We arrived at Cooper Brook
lean-to, our campsite for the night. We
had a great campsite right next to the
roaring waterfall. Some of us hung out
by the water in the lean-to while others
napped in the tents. We ate a PBJH lunch
and relaxed for the rest of the afternoon
until our pasta dinner. We were all very
grateful to retire into our tents after a long,
wet day. Just another day in paradise.
Day 17 - Dufresne

We awoke on the 17th day of our trip,
grateful that the previous day's rain had
passed. After taking care of the early
morning procedure, we all sat down and
enjoyed a brief meal of oatmeal. Quickly
venturing forth in the first portion of
that day's hike, we left Cooper Brook
and arrived at Jo-Mary Road half an horn-
early for our 10 am resupply. Robby Ford
arrived on time with a truck and the fun
began. Reunited with our long-lost Trevor
"El Jefe" Dorman, there was hugging and
celebration that preceeded that actual
resupply. Feasting on pita, hummus,
Gatorade, and fresh fruit, we quickly
packed up all the food that had been
brought to us and began the more fun
portion of the whole ordeal — divvying
up all of the snacks, gorp, and baked
goods that had been sent to us. We read
our mail and set out on the remaining
four miles of that day's travel. It went
by uneventfully and we soon arrived at
Antler's Campsite.

An unprecedented hot lunch during
backpacking followed as Guadalupe
prepared his trademark Bobolis. We then
went about drying out our clothes from
the previous day's deluge and collecting
firewood for what would be our last
fire of the trip. By the time we began
cooking dinner, we had enough wood
for a decent fire. Preparing and eating
our cheese steaks by the fire, we enjoyed

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conversation and quickly retreated to our
tents, ending one of the most luxurious
and relaxed days of this section.
Day 18 - Ike

The men of MT I woke up at 6:30 to
sunny and clear skies. We packed up
our things and had a great breakfast of
breakfast sandwiches and fresh oranges.
We then left Antlers about an hour later
for a 15-mile day, which would be the
longest of the trip. After hiking for a
couple of miles. Max, Hal, Avery, Griffin
and I stopped at Potywadjo Spring
for some of the "God Water." As much
as I tried to get some water, the spring
seemed to somehow stop me from filling
my water bottle. I was secretly incredibly
jealous of the others indulging in the
liquid panacea.

We kept going with the rest of MT I
close behind and hiked 7 miles before
stopping at the road for lunch. We had
PBJ and relaxed for a while. Eventually
we forged ahead and went the remaining
three miles to Wadleigh Stream. Once
we arrived, we all collapsed after a long
day. After eating snacks and talking, we
set up tents. Everyone was happy to relax
and rest his legs. Some played cards
while others took naps. At 5:30, James
and Griffin began to cook the delicious
chicken patties. We all talked about the
long day and we were excited to finally
see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Day 19 - Francesco

All the members of MT I woke up at
6:30 to brave the notorious Nesuntabunt.
The climb was not easy, but at least it
was quick. The rest of the morning was
spent walking to Rainbow Stream lean-
to. We had delicious tuna melts for lunch
courtesy of James and Hal. Hackett,
Dobby, James, and I played a game of
hearts. Unfortunately, Hackett won the
game by shooting the moon! For the rest
of the afternoon, we relaxed.

For dinner we had cheese and bacon
with pasta. It was delicious! After dinner
we were really tired, so most of us went
to the tents to sleep. We also talked about
how incredibly quickly Maine Trails was
passing. We were all excited and ready to
succeed on the next day of hiking.
Day 20 - T-Dog

Today the boys of MT I hiked a

mostly flat 12 miles, with a few breaks,
to Rainbow Ledges and then to Hurd
Brook lean-to. Starting at 7 am, we made
our way across the stream and began
the somewhat long hike to our final
destination of the day. Team Vacation
stopped so that it could recover from
a vicious bee sting to the team leader's
Achilles. Thankfully, after the sting,
various stories of people being stung
brought some entertainment to Team
Vacation's hike and its lead member did
not need to be epi-penned.

As we climbed up Rainbow Ledges, we
were panting and ready to sit down for a
much-needed break. Our salvation came
soon when we- came through the brush
onto the ledges. But soon enough, it was
time to go and get back to the grind. The
last 2.5 miles to the campsite passed
quickly and the incredible view of
Katahdin dominating the horizon lifted
our spirits.

We set up tents once we got to the
campsite and got water from the stream.
We settled into our new accommodations
and ate some beef stew and quinoa. It
would be the last cabin-cooked meal
on the trail together. Luckily it was
delicious. We got into our tents, ready
for the following day — our last day of
backpacking!
Day 21 - Ash

We woke up at 5:30 to start the 13 -mile
hike to finish the 100-Mile Wildernesses.
When we reached the sign marking the
end of the journey, we sprinted with our
full packs to the road, the first sign of true
civilization. We stopped at Abol Bridge
for a celebratory meal of Dr. Pepper and
chips. The rest of the hike to the bottom of
Katahdin was peaceful and fun with very
few roots and rocks to navigate. Before
we reached the base of Katahdin and our
campsite, we stopped at Big Niagara for a
swim and some cliff jumping.

After a stop at the ever-mysterious
"Space River," we entered Katahdin
Stream campground and realized we had
made it. We had completed the last day
of backpacking. After dropping our packs
and enjoying the afternoon sunshine, we
began wondering when the directors
would arrive to give us our meal of cold
cuts or some other trip shack leftover.

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However, to our great surprise, our
dinner was being prepared as we waited
unawares. Just a few feet away, Mr. Libby
was cooking up a feast for us comprised
of bear, moose, venison, hamburgers,
hotdogs, baked beans, brownies, and pie.
It was an incredibly delicious surprise and
was the perfect end to our backpacking
on the trail. We went to bed fuller than
we had been in days, and more excited
than ever knowing that the conclusion to
our journey was only hours away.
Day 22 - Max

The morning of our final day on the
trail dawned at 4:30, before the sun itself
had risen. The sky was clear and the air
cool as we enjoyed a cereal breakfast at
the foot of the Hunt Trail — the road to the
conclusion of our journey, as well as the
terminus of the AT itself.

Everyone was quiet and efficient as
we packed up camp for the last time, no
doubt contemplating what the sun would
reveal, and what the climb represented.

We began before 6 am and quickly
found ourselves covering miles with an
ease we found unfamiliar. The lack of
our heavy packs and the previous 100
miles of training had left us more than
able to climb the steep trail.

As we reached tree line and the boulder
field, the wind intensified and the sun
was hidden behind the impressive
slope of Katahdin itself. However, the
view of the valley below us, dotted with
lakes, was bathed in morning light, and
spurred our charge up to the tablelands
and Thoreau Spring.

Bare chests donned warmer layers as
we marched as one to the summit and the
conclusion of more than a camping trip.
After a few pictures to commemorate the
victory, the cold drove us off the windy
summit. We each soloed the last mile of
the trail leading back to our lives outside
the borders of Maine Trails. We all knew
that in one way or another we were
walking off of the beautiful trail, the trail
that had kept us safe for the past 22 days.
But if the trail had taught us anything, it
was that we were ready for whatever the
future held.

Maine Trails II
Ben Swanson, HBC

July 25 - Day 1

The lion-hearted cabin of Maine Trails
II rose at 6:00 sharp on July 25, eager
with excitement to take on their first day.
Once having finished a last breakfast in
Pasquaney, the boys packed the trailer
with high spirits and heavy packs. Even
the One's blaring rock music couldn't
keep us awake, however, as we rested our
spirits to prepare for the long day ahead.
Three hours later we arrived in Monson,
and took the time-honored photo in front
of the 100-Mile Wilderness warning
sign.

After a quick lunch of cold cut
sandwiches, we strapped on our packs,
naive to the difficulties we would have
to tackle. A last song, 'You Want a Piece
of Me,' faded into the surroundings as we
trudged into the woods, thus beginning
our 12-day journey. It was an arduous ten-
mile hike with many ridges to climb up
and around. We waded barefoot through
a creek overflowing with water and
battled our way uphill motivated by only
the thoughts of our next snack break. We
stopped at a beautiful waterfall and were
treated to an abundance of spare candy
by a Kieve-affiliated veteran.

Finally at dusk we arrived at our
campsite, Wilson Valley lean-to, and
made camp in the company of two other
thru hikers. It was a challenging day to
say the least; adjusting to the weight
of the packs and the physical strain of
pounding on a trail for hours on end was
not an easy task. Zach, having suffered
chronic knee problems in the past,
powered through the day like a champ,
but considering each day would be
harder than the last, we began to assess
evac contingency plans. Hamburgers
were never as satisfying as they were
that night, and afterwards everyone went
abruptly, tired from a long exhausting
day and preparing for more of the same.
July 26 - Day 2

Still adjusting to the new schedule, we
woke early at 6:00 to a damp campsite
and a hearty meal of granola. As a cabin
we departed Wilson Valley lean-to, eager
to conquer one of the hardest days of

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the 100-mile wilderness. This day was
a 10-mile hike, but more than half of it
was a steep uphill. Zach woke up with
stiffer knees, and the decision was made
to pull him out at the next possible
chance. Knocking on wood, we hoped
somewhere down the trail we would see
him again (and we did) with his knees
feeling better. After handing him off to
Robby, we carried onward through more
rivers and up the mountain.

A stroke of bad luck-Mother Nature
damned us with rain and biting winds.
Nevertheless, we hauled our 45-pound
packs through one of the steepest inclines
of the trip: Barren Ledges. Climbing to the
top, we all caught our breaths and were
once again un-phased by the hardship
we had just endured. There, looking out
from the top of the mountain over what,
in normal weather conditions, would be a
breathtaking view, we lunched on rocket
fuel-a genius combination of bagels,
peanut butter, honey, and Snickers.

After lunch, we charged up the bare
rock ledge and before long we reached
the Cloud Pond lean-to. A Chewonki
cabin of equal size forced us to have to
set up camp in and around the lean-to
on the backside of the campsite. There
we cooked pasta for pesto, only to realize
that most of it had spilled inside of Ben
Hubley's bag. The clean up job was not
insignificant, but Ben was determined
to get every bit of pesto out of his bag.
We dined tiien retired to our tents, now
engulfed entirely by the clouds around
us. As we slept, we dreamt of better
weather for tomorrow.
July 27 -Day 3

We woke up to the cold, sad, wet
drizzle of rain. Spirits were down but
we had a tasty breakfast of Pop Tarts and
were on our way. After a wet morning
full of gloom, the clouds receded to make
way for blue skies and a bright sun. We
summited 3 peaks: the logically named
Fourth Mountain, Third Mountain,
and Columbus Mountain. We stopped
atop each peak to pick wild blueberries
that were growing among the rocks and
clouds. Additionally, the views from
atop the mountains displayed the touch
of the glistening forest trees of Northern
Maine.

As we neared the end of our hike, we
paused for a brief break — that, as often
happens to many hiking rest stops,
became a nice, relaxing, twenty-minute
siesta. It was only once we returned to
hiking that we realized that we had
stopped no more than three hundred
yards from our campsite.

We arrived at the beautiful Chairback
Gap campsite with tons of remaining
daylight after meeting a plethora of
through-hikers, section-hikers, and
day hikers. As we sat around, enjoying
being off our feet, a slow stream of
hikers trickled in, first only a few at a
time, and then finished off right around
sunset as our Chewonki friends from the
night before squeezed into the crowded
campsite, making for around thirty
hikers crammed into the small campsite.
For dinner we supped on crunch wraps
made with the sweet succulence of Uncle
Ben's Mexican Fiesta Rice. For dessert, O
introduced us to the glory of "Horchata,"
a Himalayan concoction made of heated
milk, cinnamon, and honey. After what
had been a melancholy morning, we fell
asleep with stars above our heads and the
satisfaction of well-earned rest flowing
through our bodies.
July 28 - Day 4

Maine Trails II awoke to brisk mountain
air after a clear and starry night. We
knew that the day was not going to be as
difficult as prior hikes. We had a sticky
feast of oatmeal before we set for our
triple peak day. We were also excited for
our fellow cabin mate Zach Bernard to
return to protect us from whatever the
deep wilderness had in store for us. The
cabin pounded out a speedy four miles
with only a brief break to hike down a
side trail to check our East Chairback
Pond — a detour that may or may not
have been worth the energy, considering
the long uphill that was to come later in
the day. After the aforementioned speedy
hike, we were greeted on Ki Road by
Zach and Robby Ford. Robby "eagerly"
accepted our accumulated trash and we
were once again on our way.

After a harrowing ankle-deep stream
crossing, we stopped at 12:30 for a
delicious tuna bagel lunch and for a
quick dip in Gulf Hagas Brook, hopefully

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slowing the progress of our formidable
body odor. After lunch we separated
as Stefan and the group of guys who
for some unknown reason chose to call
themselves the Fab Five, sped towards
our campsite in order to pick out the best
tent sites. Only a few brief breaks later
and we had made it to our campsite at
the Carl A. Newhall Lean-to in the high
altitude. That night we cooked dinner
in the natural stadium seating around
one of the tents. It was the most glorious
of Dank nights, and the sweet taste of
pounds and pounds of cheese rocked us
to sleep as we prepared ourselves for a
tough following day.
July 29 - Day 5

Drizzle tapped a pitter-patter on our
tent. Stefan shakes our cozy lair forcing
us to wake up for a big day ahead. The
lethargic boys of Maine Trails II unzip
the tent to find ominous clouds rolling
in over our heads. Our starving stomachs
yearn for French toast and apple-smoked
bacon, a desire not quite satiated by our
three bowls of dry granola. We throw our
beautiful Louis Vuitton packs onto our
hardy backs ready to shred the four peaks
that today has in store. On our way up the
first. Gulf Hagas Mountain, we climb up
single file, farting in each other's faces, in
sweet remembrance of last night's Dank.
Some of the most horrendous scents of
all time.

The fog is thick — it's hard to see ten
feet in front. The next peak falls to our
boot prints. Hiking up the second peak
with a partner gives us the opportunity to
ponder the meaning of life. We share our
insights on politics, society, music, you
name it. Before we know it, peak three
is done. West Peak cannot match us. The
sun above us begs to claw through the
thick fog. No way will the stubborn fog
surrender.

Another brutal peak. Sweat pours
dovm our faces. Peak three. Hay
Mountain, done. Adrenaline rushes
through our sore bodies as we realize we
have one more peak to go. After a gnarly
climb, we're relieved to welcome a Kieve
delicacy — rocket fuel (peanut butter
and honey sandwiches with Snickers
bars crushed inside) — into our growling
stomachs. The perfect victory meal for

the top of White Cap.

We sprint down the final mountain
eager to get settled into our new
campsite. In the East Branch of the
Pleasant River, we bathe, cleansing our
bodies and minds. Wes gets attacked by
leeches. Night creeps upon us at East
Branch Lean-to, and we fly to Thailand
for a delicious meal of Gado Gado
(Thai peanut noodles) a la Sergeant Ben
Swanson. Darkness eerily surrounds us.
The boys of Maine Trails II are ready to
hit the hay.
July 30 - Day 6

We woke early, as is our custom, to the
pitter-patter of chilled morning showers.
Nearly a week into the odyssey that is
Maine Trails. We have fully assimilated
ourselves to trail life. With the
listlessness concomitant with dawn rises
(during which it seems all our energy
is channeled into the furious shivering
of our aching bodies), we reluctantly
dismantled our camp and packed up.
All the while our focus is lasered in on
the cooking area, where Ben and Stefan
are busily whipping up some deliciously
cheesy home fries.

After wolfing down every last potato
bit (and, in some cases, laboriously
scraping away the potato peels freed
with our bowls for an extra few morsels),
the men of Maine Trails II hit the trail.
We were all ecstatic, frankly, over having
completed what was billed to be the
hardest day of the trip. "From here," we
reiterated over and over to ourselves,
"It'll all be downhill, literally," (except,
of course, for Katahdin). We were,
therefore, a little flustered when we
were met with two steep ascents early
on in the day. We scampered over these
middling obstacles, however; our packs
wonderfully unsubstantial after six days
of eating. From there, we were rewarded
with a gradual downhill for a few miles
until we reached a river crossing. We
traversed the river atop a precarious
dam of strewn about logs and twigs.
The dam appeared to be constructed by
a beaver, in the spirit of the Hundred-
Mile Wilderness; however, we suspected
human origins.

We lunched at the river crossing on a
marvelous banquet of sweet meats and

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aged cheese; admiring scenic views of
the far-reaching placid lake behind us,
we realized the magnitude of the peaks
we had previously conquered. Tummies
full and meat-craving appetites satisfied,
we bombed down the last few miles of
the day to arrive at the Cooper Brook
Falls lean-to.

After scanning the spacious, level
campsite for tent spots, we bathed and
relaxed in the glorious cascades of Cooper
Brook. With the sun reflecting amber rays
off the calm pools, we gazed at the canal
of open, cerulean sky formed naturally
by the absence of arboreal obstructions
over the stream. After a glorious meal of
the cheesiest Dank ever seen at Kieve,
we slipped into our tents, ready for the
resupply the following morn.
July 31 - Day 7

Oh, this day, this glorious day, sun
calling out to us from the heavens! With
the earliest of critters we rise to greet
the newborn day. Not even the driest
of bowls of granola can dim the luster
of life, sprinkled across every moment
and stirred into every breath. It is but a
mere four miles, light on our feet, fast on
our toes, fingertips outstretched to touch
every passing leaf and flower. The land
tilts slowly down, drawing us, pulling us
with all the force of gravity towards our
goal: resupply, resupply, oh sweetest of
days.

Oh T.J., our T.J., there is no sight
grander than yours as you glide down Jo-
Mary road with your van of succulence!
You greet us with open arms but so, too,
with open coolers. We duck your arms
if only to meet this sweet new food but
seconds sooner. And wait! There's more!
What more could we ask for, and yet
here you are, filling our arms with mail
and goodies, sent to us, with the utmost
of haste to reach us in this moment of
salvation, as we emerge from the wild.

But alas, our time of harvest must draw
to a close, and, boots dragging, clouds of
dust exploding forth into the air as toes
reluctantly move forward. Boots are tied,
buckles clipped, and once again the trail
pulls us forward, forward, onward to our
goal. And at last, there before us, rising
out of the trees ahead of us is Antlers
campsite, our sweet respite for the eve.

Newly heavy packs slump to the
ground and soon bodies join them. But
the day is still young, and recreation may
be had. Nap, oh glorious nap, how you
caress our tired bodies! Oh water, sweet
Lower Jo-Mary Lake, how your waves lap
against and soothe our dust-hardened
skin! Oh canoe, wonderful, random
canoe we found tied up on shore, how
you provide such sweet entertainment
on this tired afternoon! And at last fresh
chicken parmesan subs are filling our
mouths and we collapse into sleeping
bags, the decadence of sweet resupply
day at last taking its toll.
August 1 - Day 8

As always the budding adolescents
of Maine Trails II awoke to the horror
of Stefan's wake up call. After a hearty
breakfast of granola, the crew was ready
to do some damage. After coming up
with the plan to do 11 miles and push to
the state campsite at Nahmakanta Lake,
the boys were anticipating a long day
ahead of them. And a long day it was.
Despite attempting to stop at an earlier
campsite, the crew hiked too hard and
blew right past it. And so, after what
seemed like forever, the boys finally gave
up hiking and came upon our break site
and lunch venue — the glorious vista of
a random spot on the side of the trail.
For lunch we brought out the bagels and
our five-pound tub of hummus. After
our appetites were sated, we were asked
trivia questions for pieces of resupply
beef jerky, made by our in-house chef
evacuee, Zach Bernard. The cabin soon
found out that this was no easy trivia
game as Stefan exposed his penchant for
marsupials, much to everyone's chagrin.

Filled up, the boys hit the trail again,
this time not stopping until our campsite.
After what felt like eons, we finally
reached the state campsite at the end
of Nahmakanta Lake, which was fully
equipped with a beach and not one, but
two outhouses — a rare luxury for these
rugged AT hikers. Looking out over the
stunning views, the boys chowed down
on a dinner of bacon alfredo, a cabin
favorite. After a rowdy photo shoot by
the lake and some late night reading, the
boys hit the sack, dreaming of our goal.
Mount Katahdin.

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August 2 - Day 9

We were awoken by the terribly loud
and incessant patter of rain on our tent
flies. We only emerged from our dry tents
to brave the rain because of a promise
of Snickers to start the day. Hoping to
outsmart the rain, we had a quick snack
breakfast and then hit the trail for a quick
two and a half mile jaunt to the Wadleigh
Stream lean-to. Only upon arriving at
our first landmark did we stop and pull
out the stove in the shelter of the lean-
to for some delicious egg sandwiches.
While the rain refused to let up and
instead only grew more intense, we hung
around in the lean-to, reading and taking
naps, all the while listening to the rain's
incessant song.

When the rain finally stopped at 1
pm, we got up and started the remaining
eight miles. Less than two miles in,
however, we found ourselves thwarted
by Nesuntabunt Mountain, rising,
steeper than anything we'd seen yet, out
of nowhere, to shock and destroy our
morale. All hiking slowed to a crawl. But
as suddenly as it had started, we were at
the top, drenched equally by the rain and
by our own sweat. The rest came easy.
We took the nice, slow downhill the last
six miles to arrive at Rainbow Stream
lean-to at 7 pm to slowly clearing skies
and crunch wraps once again filled with
the delicious Uncle Ben's Mexican Fiesta
Rice.

August 3 - Day 10

We had a calm and relaxed day. It was
only interrupted by the occasional rain,
which temporarily created small bulbs
of stress. The day began with a nice long
sleep-in, allowing the cabin to catch up
on some much-needed rest. At around
10 am we packed up the majority of our
gear, leaving out only what was necessary
for a delicious breakfast of cheesy home
fries. After breakfast was completed and
the pan laboriously scraped clean, we
proceeded to get ready to hike for the
day.

The hike for the day was done in pairs.
It was slow and pleasant, as the overall
destination was a mere 3.7 miles away.
As the pairs began on the way to the
first resting spot, they came to a fork
in the trail; the path on the left was .2

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miles to a dam and the right continued
down the Appalachian Trail. Those who
decided to venture down the detour trail,
soon returned at top speed, noting that
perhaps it might have been a bit more
enjoyable had they not accidentally
kicked a hornet's nest. During the break a
snack lunch containing Chex Mix, peanut
butter Ritz Bitz, and Nature Valley bars
was distributed.

Soon after the snack, the pairs
continued on their journey for the
remaining mile to our campsite. The
campsite at Rainbow Spring was quite
nice, with several tent sites within fifty
yards of the fire ring — a feature that was
taken full advantage of by Wes and his
team of pyromaniacs. After a very short
dip in the surprisingly refreshing waters
of Rainbow Lake, the cabin dined on a
nice pesto dinner, and then climbed into
the tents for the night.
August 4 - Day 11

This next day was relatively short, but
glorious nonetheless. Looking ahead to
an easy, 7.7-mile day, the team set out
at a breakneck pace. Pounding ahead in
pairs, Maine Trails II killed the first two
miles to the first stopping point at the
Rainbow Mountain trail. Here, we were
surprised to discover that the trail broke
from its usual modus operandi of going
miles out of the way to specifically go up
the steepest mountain around, this time
sliding to the side of Rainbow Mountain
and using an optional spur trail to the
peak for those masochistic enough to try
it. The team charged on for another two
miles and suddenly everything changed.
The trail began to steadily climb as swiftly
as the temperature, grinding away at our
bodies and our morale. We were quickly
drenched in sweat.

But there! At last! The top of Rainbow
Ledges appeared and we slowed our pace,
then stopped, letting the packs drop to
the ground. Although a nutritious lunch
of pepperoni and cheese was pulled out
and prepared, many campers chose to
forego the protein, so filled were they by
the enormous hedges of wild blueberries
surrounding the trail. While some took
the opportunity for a quick nap in
the sun, others gazed out at the land
ahead, taking in our final view of Mount

Katahdin before we would be trudging
up its enormous flanks.

But all naps must come to an end
eventually, and so the men of Maine Trails
II begrudgingly shouldered their packs
once again and cruised through the final
couple miles of the day, at last arriving
at Hurd Brook lean-to, the last campsite
of the Hundred-Mile Wilderness. After
yet more naps, the cabin fired up the
stove and once again upped the ante on
dinner, making the Dankest Dank yet,
likely achieving the heretofore unheard
of three-to-one cheese-to-pasta ratio.
We drifted to sleep with full bellies and
the satisfying knowledge that within
a day, we would be emerging from the
wilderness as men.
August 5 - Day 12

The morn is bright and hopeful, for
twelve days ago we ventured forth into
the wilderness — a hundred miles of it,
as a matter of fact — and today we will
emerge, grizzled, strong, and as gods
among men. Our faces are caressed by
the sweet rays of cloudy skies and the
comforting breeze of fifty-degree winds.
But does this concern us? Nay, for we
have peachy fuzzies on our skins (the
truest sign of manhood) and granola in
our mouths and we were born to rock
this thirteen-mile day.

Three miles pass and we are emerging
onto the Golden Road, a sign reading,
"You are now entering the Hundred-Mile
Wilderness, do not enter without at least
seven days of food," at our backs, for this
wilderness is nothing but a vanquished
beast left in our wake. We turn right and
cross the Penobscot, then stop, filling
ourselves with treats from the Abol
Bridge store — the sweet, almost-forgotten
succulence of civilization. Then, as soon
as we have stopped, we are once again
in motion, trudging forth towards our
ultimate goal. We cross into Baxter, this
invisible line of demarcation a challenge
to us, urging us ahead, just ten more
miles until we rest; ten more miles until
we rest.

We surge forward, hiking ever faster,
turning down along Nesowadnehunk
Stream, stopping only for Big Niagara.
Most sit and gorge on a fresh packet of
tuna, safely in the trees and out of the

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rain. Wiley and Emerson, however, will
not go softly into that sweet night and
rage ahead, leaping off into the frigid
waters of the stream; only once on the
surface do they turn to look for a way
back out.

And once again we are on the trail,
rushing, nearly running, because the end
is so very near. The sweet melodious
sound of the gift of music massages our
ears as Sergeant Ben belts out from the
back. Suddenly, we're there, we burst
forth into the Katahdin Stream campsite.
No sooner do our packs come off than do
T.J. and that glorious van appear on the
road. It's resupply day. We gorge on care
packages and cheesesteaks then clamber
into bed, ready for the coming summit.
August 6 - Day 13

Today, we make every moment count.
At 1 am we're out of bed. Moving among
the beams of headlamps and the sounds
of urgent whispers, Maine Trails II
breaks down tents and loads the kayak
trailer to depart. At 2:30 we're on the
trail, moving as a single, silent train,
nothing but a line of white dots moving
through the darkness. At 3:20 we stop
and turn off our headlamps. As our eyes
begin to adjust, thousands of stars begin
to emerge out of the darkness. The dark,
looming mass of Katahdin still rises
above us. At 4 we break tree line and
scramble over rocks as the winds whip
around us, making the air feel like ice. At
5:30 we're at the top for the sun to break
over the ridges of Katahdin. This is the
moment of glory we've been working for
the last thirteen days and it is glorious.
We feast on Snickers and peanut butter,
then, shivering, we turn back down the
trail.

As we hike down, we pass familiar
faces of through-hikers working their
way up, the final day on the trail. We
congratulate them and pause for a few
minutes of shared glory. With the sun
now high in the sky, we return to the van,
tired, but satisfied. But this is only the
start to our day.

After a brief but glorious stop at
Millinocket House of Pizza (ten pies
down the hatch in less than forty
minutes), we're on the road, driving south
towards the sea. At long last we arrive in

Stonington on Deer Isle. We unload the
trailer and bid our backpacks goodbye
in exchange for kayaks, thrilled at all
the extra room available for our things.
By 6 pm we're on the water paddling
out towards our second act, the beautiful
finish to the grueling trip so far.

As the sun's golden rays slowly fade
to red and long shadows gradually
overtake the sea, we pull up our boats at
Rock Island. After a quick and delicious
dinner of bacon alfredo, we can at last
retire to our tents. We take one last look
out across the bay at the twinkling lights
of Stonington before we zip up our
sleeping bags and close our eyes. We end
our long, packed, perfect day.
August 7 - Day 14

Still adjusting to the new oceanside
lifestyle, we spent a long breakfast on
Rock Island contemplating our next
course of action. Jeremy had gotten
sick to the stomach that night (most
likely from all the resupply sweets) and
his incessant vomiting kept up many
members of his tent group. Between
bites of our tasty breakfast sandwiches
we discussed: Should we take a rest day
or tackle our first substantial paddle to
Isle de Haut? The low energy of the cabin
weighed heavily in our decision, and
since the cabin's predilection favored the
former option, we spent the next hour
moving belongings not to the kayaks but
to the beach instead.

There on the white sand we chilled,
snacked, and discussed our current
literary ventures. Multiple hours we
spent basking in the sun, careful to
remind those most vulnerable to sunburn
to reapply frequently. By late afternoon,
lunch had been served and the most
animated of the cabin took a short paddle
to Green Island with the understanding
that on it was a freshwater quarry in
which they could bathe. A twenty-
minute paddle took us to this beautiful
island, and it was what we expected and
more. The water was very refreshing, as
was the ability to stand near each other
without smelling the stink of sweat and
body odor. Heading back to Rock, we
were stimulated with a new sense of
excitement to what we might discover on
the next island and the next after that.

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August 8 - Day 15

Crawling out of our tents in the morning
and craning our necks skyward, our
spirits immediately sank. The weather
radio warned of bad conditions, and the
rolling black clouds and roaring thunder
left nothing to speculation. We ate a fast
and hot oatmeal breakfast and quickly
began packing our kayaks, mindful to
not pack away our rain jackets. Not
more than 5 minutes after launching off
the beach of Rock did the sky let loose
and the rain begin to fall. Hoods up and
grips tight, we powered onward through
the broken water. Although the trip took
no more than 2 hours, having paddled
the whole way, it felt 4 times that. We
arrived, finally, and we bunkered down
in a small hut near the public landing to
eat lunch.

At this point, it was crucial to our JC
Stefan to find service in order to make a
business call. If no service was available
on Isle de Haut, the cabin had no choice
but to turn around and head back to
Stonington (which would have been a
long day indeed). Luckily, after searching
the island for nearly an hour, he finally
found a spot with decent coverage. The
counselors neglected to tell this to the
cabin, however, in attempt to trick them
into thinking they had another hard
paddle ahead.

But alas, once we left Isle de Haut
harbor, we cut a sharp left and landed
on Kimball Harbor to camp, much to
the chagrin of the cabin. There, we
unpacked, skipped rocks, and dined
on Boboli pizzas. Abiding by L.N.T.
protocol, we played card games to finish
off the extra pizza sauce. Amazingly we
still had room in our swollen bellies for
S 'Mores which we devoured ravenously.
Afterward, we all retired to our tents for
an hour of reading time, before hitting the
pillow and dreaming of better weather
tomorrow.
August 9 - Day 16

We woke to more of the same. Rain
pounded the rain fly of our tent like
beating on a drum. Groggy and cold,
we huddled under the rain fly with our
books and our bowls awaiting our scoops
of corn beef hash. The weather radio
gave a gloomy report of rain, rain, and

more of the same. After breakfast, we had
no business staying out and getting wet
in the rain, so back in the tents we went
to stimulate our minds with the prose
of America's literary geniuses. The rain
let up, however, just long enough for a
long lunch of tuna melts. When it picked
up, back to the tents we went for more
reading and snoozing. At last, good news:
the weather radio said no more rain the
next day.

August 10 - Day 17

Day broke with the sun shining as bright
as our spirits. After an entire day socked
in by the weather, even the small amount
of fog still burning off the water was not
enough to bring us down. Campers and
counselors alike exploded out of tents
ready to start the day. And who could
ask for a better way to turn around the
weather than a delicious breakfast of the
best taters yet? Stuffed to the gills, stakes
were pulled up and kayaks were loaded
before heading onto the water.

So pumped to get paddling again,
the cabin flew across the water. Even
moments of intense headwinds couldn't
slow down the paddling champions of
Maine Trails II. We set our course for
Green Island and its awesome quarry,
a revisit for some of the guys, a brand
new treat for others. Although the quarry
was predictably busy that fine Saturday
morning, we were able to find a secluded
corner and quietly relax. Quietly,
however, until we discovered that our
bread for lunch had gotten damp on the
transit to Green Island. Although howls
echoed around the quarry, a solution was
quickly found when Stefan suggested
laying the bread out in the sun while
we went for a swim. After a relaxing
dip and scrub (with our sweet smelling
peppermint bio-degradable soap), we
turned to an awesome lunch of rocket
fuel to keep us going throughout the
day.

Jumping back in our boats, we took a
quick detour in Stonington to top off on
water before heading over to Hell's Half
Acre, a small but gorgeous island just
east of town. The sun slowly setting on
our beautiful beach was the perfect was
to cap of the most amazing dinner of the
trip: pasta and red sauce with fresh corn

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on the cob grilled over the fire. We went
to bed satisfied and ready for another
amazing day.
August 11 - Day 18

Waking at the crack of dawn, we roll out
of tents and munch on a quick breakfast
of granola. With boats packed, we bid
adieu to Hell's Half Acre and push off.
We move west past Camp Island to Russ
Island before cutting across to the shore
of Deer Isle. With the wind at our backs,
we cruise towards Stonington with little
effort at all. Sun on our shoulders we
coast up to the boat launch at nine on the
dot. The One is ready for us and waiting.
We load boats as quickly as possible, and
then jump into the van.

As we drive towards Friendship, we
dine on all kinds of treats, sent from
loving friends and families, mailing
us the energy we need to finish out
our amazing trip. Of particular note is
North Harris counselor Pietro who has
baked us a cake too big to fit in any of
the boats (later, a solution will be found
by wrapping the cake in a trash bag and
strapping it to the deck of Sergeant Ben's
kayak). After the One's ever-helpful
GPS takes us on a scenic tour of coastal
Maine, we are at last at the boat launch
and transfer all our gear and our brand
new food back into boats.

We set off into the water, forging forth
with the wind once again at our backs.
We make for Crotch Island, location
of Camp Friendship, where we'll be
camping and doing some community
service. We pull up on a sandy beach to
a fantastic campsite out on the northern
tip of the island. Chris, owner of the
camp comes to meet us at the campsite,
along with Henry Kennedy. The boys,
psyched to help out, take to improving
the campsite the minute Chris and Henry
leave. Although many improvements are
made, of particular note is a wooden
staircase Jeremy and Wiley build into the
steep bank in order to make it easier to
carry up our boats.

We dine on burgers and sit around a
roaring fire before slipping into bed.
August 12 - Day 19

We were roused from our slumbers,
not by the usual alarm clock of Stefan's
voice, but of the sweet smell of bacon

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cooking on the pan. There's no way to
start the day like a delicious breakfast of
egg sandwiches on bagels. After the food
is cooked and the dishes are cleaned, we
got to work. Sitting in the middle of the
campsite is an enormous canvas fifty-
person tent. It was our job to get it ready
for the trash and so last night Zach put in
a formidable effort, cutting it down into
small, manageable pieces.

After carrying the junk tent down to the
trash the team made itself useful around
Camp Friendship. The boys lugged scrap
lumber around campus, pulled nails, and
many other useful tasks. Throughout the
day were several intense mini-games of
soccer, all considered short periods of the
same game. As the day drew to an end,
the victory finally went to Stefan, Wiley,
O, Ben, and James Stites, representing
the greatest miscarriage of justice since
the assassination of Abraham Lincoln.

Hot from the soccer game, the cabin
took a quick jump in the ocean before
turning in for the night.
August 13 - Day 20

The men of Maine Trails II woke on
day twenty to a cloudy sky and thick
banks of fog. Despite the inclement
weather, the crew opted to venture forth
onto the seas. After a quick stop at the
southern end of Crotch Island to bid
Chris goodbye and fill up on water, the
team paddled off. Moving first around an
island and through Friendship Harbor,
the men paddled boldly across the ocean,
surrounded by dense layers of grey.

Only after hours (two of them) of
intense paddling, Maine Trails II pulled
up at Kieve's own Bremen landing. Due
to the intense strength of the kayakers,
the crew arrived at Bremen before
lunchtime, at which point the decision
was made to make a hot meal of Dank
for lunch.

The afternoon was spent reading and
partaking in another of Maine Trails II's
famous literary discussions. As time wore
on, the activities turned to a giant game
of dice, gambling with Goldfish. This
gave ample opportunity for Wes and Ben
to illustrate that they don't understand
how antes work by going "all in."

It was around this time that Hog Island
Ryan, Audubon Aaron, and Griff arrive

to guide the boys through cooking up
some fresh lobster for dinner. Next
thing anyone knows, Henry Kennedy is
arriving with all kinds of chips and pies
and ice cream. Needless to say, the boys
feasted like Vikings after battle. After
Griff chatted with the guys, convincing
them all to come back next summer for
Kieve-Wavus West, the crew drifted off
to the tents to collapse into one of the
most intense food comas of their lives.
August 14 - Day 21

Although the men awoke to
rain dampening their spirits, they
were determined not to let a small
inconvenience like the weather get in the
way of making the most of the final full
day of the trip. After a quick breakfast of
oatmeal, the men packed up camp and
paddled south along the west coast of Hog
Island to the tip of Loud's Island. Here,
they stopped and grabbed a snack at Fort
Zeus, an enormous driftwood mansion
assembled right on the beach. Here,
Wes and Zach learned the importance of
knowing which way the tide is flowing
when parking one's boat.

Heading back on the water, the men
turned north again to stop at the campsite
at the southern tip of Hog Island to set
up camp and have lunch. No sooner
had the boats pulled up at Hog, than the
sun burst through the clouds, lightening
spirits. After a hardcore lunch of tuna
melts, a large part of the cabin decided to
take advantage of the beautiful day and
enjoy the beach at Hog. Others, however,
still wished to venture forth into the sea
and jumped in the boats for a quick day
paddle down to Harbor Island. The boys
shot down to Harbor in record time.
Upon arriving, they immediately set to
work finding the best ledges to jump off.
Harbor is also home to some amazing
caves, and, with the help of Jeremy's
camera flash, the crew explored many of
these, making for an amazing afternoon.

The paddle back, however, was not
quite as amazing. Right as the team
decided to turn back for Hog, the wind
suddenly changed direction, now coming
directly into their faces. Digging as hard
as they could, the guys managed to make
some hard-earned headway, despite the
slowly increasing wind speed. It was

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only after several hours that the sun
began to sink behind the trees and the
wind relented, allowing the team to pull
into shore at Hog Island just as it was
getting dark.

The entire cabin celebrated the
awesome day with some pasta and garlic
bread. For dessert, popcorn was popped
over the fire and doused with honey and
brown sugar. After staying up just past
midnight in order to wish Stefan a happy
birthday, the team collapsed into the
tents, satisfied by a day well-spent.
August 15 - Day 22

The proud young men of Maine Trails II
awoke with the sun, the bittersweet taste
of an ending chapter in their mouths — or
possibly just the taste of stale granola.
Rising with the sun, the crew loaded up
the kayaks one last time. Paddling north
along the eastern shore of Hog Island,
the kayaks floated past a beautiful dual-
masted schooner moored just offshore.
Having made fantastic time, the team
unloaded at Bremen once again. Shortly
thereafter T.J. arrived with the camp van
and before they knew it, everyone was
pulling out of Bremen.

The van stopped at Damariscotta Mills
where the boats were unloaded and put
in the water. Gear was left behind in
the trailer, allowing the boys to feel the
luxury of paddling with empty kayaks.

Everyone paddled north, heading up the
long finger of Damariscotta Lake on the
way back to camp. Although there were
hot showers and good food waiting at the
end of the day, there was a hesitancy to
each paddle stroke, as if no one was quite
sure they wouldn't rather head back out
to sea for another twenty-two days.

As is tradition, the men of Maine
Trails II hoped to make a grand entrance
when returning to Kieve. They certainly
succeeded. Picture this: young campers
splash and frolic in the warm waters of
Damariscotta Lake. It's General Swim
and life is swell. Suddenly, a camper
stands up on the raft and cries "Look
over there!" The entire waterfront turns
to where the boy is pointing. Christmas
music immediately fills the air. Out on
the lake, six kayaks of rugged Maine
Trails campers are towing a motorboat.
In the motor boat stand two bearded men
crying, "Ho, ho, ho! " and, "On Dancer! On
Prancer! Do pull us so hard! On Donner
and Cupid! Paddle fast, Zach Bernard!"
As the motley crew paddle past the rafts,
presents are thrown out from a large
black trash bag. Campers leap out to grab
the flying gifts, only to find that they are
all simply wag bags. The boats all pull up
to shore. The boys all lift their hands to
the air. Maine Trails II is back and it was
the best trip ever.

317

KW WEST - COUNCIL
CAROLYN "GRIFF" N. GRIFFITHS, KW West Trip Leader 2012-13; Wavus Council
2011; Bates College 2010; Leadership School 2010-13; The Leadership School,
Teacher; carolyn.griffi@gmail.com; PC Box 169, Nobleboro, Maine 04555-0169
MILES "TYLER" T. PACE, KW West Trip Leader 2013; Kieve Council 2003-06 &
2012; KW West Camper 2002; Kieve Camper 1994-2001; Connecticut College 2007;
Leadership School 2010-13; The Leadership School, Teacher; milestpace@gmail.com;
PC Box 169, Nobleboro, Maine 04555-0169

KW WEST - PARTICIPANTS
ELIZABETH "LIDDY" D. AMBLER, [KW West Session I]; KW West Camper 2013;
Wavus Camper 2006-11; Girls' Camp Camper 2005; Phillips Exeter Academy; 912
Middle St, Bath, Maine 04530

COURTNEY "COURTS" J. BLISS, [KW West Session I]; KW West Camper 2013;
Wavus Camper 2006-12; Westover School; cbliss@westoverschool.org; 211 Indian
Mountain Rd, Lakeville, Connecticut 06039

AUDREY C. BRANSFIELD, [KW West Session I]; KW West Camper 2013; Wavus
Camper 2007-12; Buckingham, Browne & Nichols Schools; audrey.bransfield®
comcast.net; 28 Balcarres Rd, W. Newton, Massachusetts 02465
JOHN S.C.J. DEVINE, [KW West Session I]; KW West Camper 2013; Kieve Camper

2006- 12; Cheverus High School; sdevine2@maine.rr.com; devine.iohn@cheverus.org;
12 Stornoway Rd, Cumberland Foreside, Maine 04110

CARTER C.H. GRAY, [KW West Session I]; KW West Camper 2013; Kieve Camper

2007- 12; Lexington Catholic High School; cchgray@gmail.com; 241 South Ashland
Ave, Lexington, Kentucky 40502-1727

THOMAS "TOM" S. W. HEFFERNAN, [KW West Session II]; KW West Camper 2013;
Kieve Camper 2008-12; Calvert Hall College High School; tswh95@gmail.com; 5702
Stony Run Dr, Baltimore, Maryland 21210

EMMA R. HOWARD, [KW West Session II]; KW West Camper 2013; Wavus Camp
2007-12; Agnes Irwin School; emmax3@live.com; 964 Locust Grove Ter, Rosemont,
Pennsylvania 19010

ALEXANDER "LEXI" R. KEMP, [KW West Session I]; KW West Camper 2013; Kieve
Camper 2008-09 & 2011-12; Blair Academy; Kempa@blair.edu; 258 Hopewell Amwell
Rd, Hopewell, New Jersey 08525

CHRISTIAN J. KRAUSS, [KW West Session II]; KW West Camper 2013; Kieve Camper
2004-08; Tabor Academy; monkeyboy_1022@yahoo.com; ckrauss@taboracademy.org;
1021 Loma Vista Dr, Napa, California 94558

MAXWELL "MAX" A. LASSER, [KW West Session II]; KW West Camper 2013; Kieve
Camper 2008-11; Dexter School; maxwell.lasser@gmail.com; 26 Hubbard Park Rd,
Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138

MEGHAN E MILLER, [KW West Session II]; KW West Camper 2013; Wavus Camp

2006- 12; St. Luke's School; 75 Colonial Rd, New Canaan, Connecticut 06840
ELLIOTT W. MURPHY, [KW West Session I]; KW West Camper 2013; Kieve Camper
2004 & 2006-10; Glenbard West High School, IL; 458 Bryant Av, Glen Ellyn, Illinois
60137

ALEXANDRA V. O'BRYAN, [KW West Session II]; KW West Camper 2013; Wavus
Camp 2007-12; American School In London TASIS; avo495@aol.com; 8 Elm Tree Rd,
St. John's Wood, London, England NW8 9JX

DAYLA J. PASCADOR, [KW West Session II]; KW West Camper 2013; Girls' Camp
2005; Wavus Camp 2006-12; Godolphin & Latymer School; daylal23@hotmail.com;
108 Clarendon Rd, London, United Kingdom Wll 2HR

AIDEN J. REDMOND, IV, [KW West Session I]; KW West Camper 2013; Kieve Camper

2007- 12; Hill School; 656 Cherry Hill Rd, Princeton, New Jersey 08540-7611
CASEY A. ROSS, [KW West Session I]; KW West Camper 2013; Wavus Camper 2007-
12; West High School; 7325 Budge Way, Bakersfield, California 93309-4294

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PIETRO SARTI, [KW West Session II]; KW West Camper 2013; Liceo Scientifico
Giacomo Ulivi, Italy; pietrosartil@gmail,com; Borgo Lalatta, 15, Parma, Italy 43121
HANNAH D. SCHOTT, [KW West Session II]; KW West Camper 2013; Wavus Camp
2006-12; Walnut Hill School for the Arts; 20 Waltham St, Pawtucket, Rhode Island
02860-5637

CONOR P. STEVENS, (KW West Session III; KW West Camper 2013; Kieve Camper
2008 & 2010-12; Daniel Hand High School; 14 Juniper Ln, Madison, Connecticut
06443

BENNETT "BEN" W. WHEELER, [KW West Session I]; KW West Camper 2013;
Kieve Camper 2009-12; Williston Northampton School; bwheeler@williston.com; 46
Crescent Rd, Longmeadow, Massachusetts 01106

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Writing about a Kieve-Wavus trip
always poses a challenge. For those of
you who have done it, you know what
I mean. How is it possible to capture all
of the amazing things that happened?
How can you do justice to all of the
inside jokes, those moments which, to
someone who wasn't there, would seem
at best sort of weird and, more than
likely, downright strange? How can you
describe the growth that takes place in
the high places and in the deep forests, in
the early hours of the morning or late at
night around a cracking fire that banishes
the chill of five days worth of rain? To
be honest, I don't think you really can.
When it comes to writing about what
happened this summer on Kieve-Wavus

West, I would say it's even more difficult,
so wonderful was the experience.

Instead of writing about what
happened then, I'll write about what I
felt afterwards, and will leave the telling
of the many remarkable stories from this
summer to those twenty young men and
women who gave Griff and me what we
both regard as the best eight weeks of our
lives. If you have a chance, ask them what
happened- you might not understand,
but you won't be disappointed.

At the heart of what I'm feeling now
is a profound sense of hope. I have
never been more hopeful for the future
of Kieve-Wavus. Every day I spent with
those young people I learned a lesson.
Every day someone inspired me to be a

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better tripper, a better leader and, above
all, a better person. So much so that Griff
and I rarely felt like we were in charge-
indeed, we were the ones learning
throughout it all. And that's why I'm
hopeful- because in a little less than
a year many of these young people are
going to become counselors at Kieve or
Wavus, and in so doing will, I am sure,
raise up and inspire an entire generation
of campers.

I also feel truly thankful, and I must
say that this part is for those of you who

were out there with us. On the plane ride
back to the east Griff and I laughed and
cried with the joyous remembering of it
all. I think the people on the plane were
annoyed and confused, but oh well. And
then, as we were touching down, both
of us were struck by an overwhelming
feeling of gratitude. Each and everyone
of you changed our lives, and we will be
forever grateful for it. From the bottom of
both our hearts, thank you a thousand,
thousand times over. We'll never forget
it.

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9/11 Family Camp

We had another wonderhil week at
9/11 Family Camp this past August. The
weather was great, food plentiful and
delicious, and spending time with great
friends along the shores of Damariscotta
Lake, priceless. Thanks to our staff
and volunteers who always make this
week so memorable. Special thanks to
Lee Giberson and her staff in the PQ
kitchen for all of their wonderful meals
and friendly smiles and unwavering
hospitality.

In addition to an evening show by
"Two: High Energy Juggling", Bruce
Marshall had the PQ house rockin with
songs of his own and lots of sing-along
favorites for his 12th year in a row! A
big thanks to Mike and Darcy Knoff from
Country Coach Charters who donated
their trolleys to transport everyone to the
12th annual delicious lobster bake at the
Pemaquid Fisherman's Co-op!

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Alumni & Family Adventure Camp

Alumni & Family Adventure Camp ~ 2013

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'13 Session I — Junior Kieve

*13 Session II — Junior Kieve

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